Fruit harvested early at Fairfield Community Orchard

FAIRFIELD – The fruit at the Fairfield Community Orchard ripened early this year because of the long summer drought.

In a normal year, mid- to late-October would be a great time to go apple-picking, but not this year. Avi Pogel, one of the founders of the Fairfield Community Orchard, said apples and other fruit ripened about three weeks ahead of schedule in 2023.

Pogel and others affiliated with the orchard organized an apple-picking event on Sunday, Oct. 1, where the public was invited to help themselves to the bounty of the orchard, a grove of 30-odd trees just east of Chautauqua Park. Pogel said about two dozen people showed up for the event, who picked apples with the aid of ladders and fruit pickers, which have a little basket at the end of a long stick that allows a person to harvest fruit high off the ground.

“We had people who had come in the past, as well as a pretty large contingent of MIU students from other countries like Jordan, Vietnam and India, who brought their families to harvest apples,” Pogel said. “The chestnuts were also ripe, so I showed them how to pick chestnuts. I brought some pawpaws from my own tree, so everybody got to try some. Folks got to take home what they wanted to make pies and share with friends, and then we were able to donate some of the harvest.”

Pogel said 25 pounds of apples went to Golden Magnolia Sanctuary’s soup kitchen. During an earlier harvest this fall, orchard members harvest more than 300 pounds of apples, with half going to Golden Magnolia Sanctuary and the other half going to The Lord’s Cupboard. In August and September, orchard members harvested pears, and most of those were donated to Golden Magnolia Sanctuary.

The public is invited to pick fruit at the orchard whenever it is ripe, and the orchard committee asks the public to be mindful to leave enough fruit for others to enjoy as well. Pogel said they don’t want people climbing trees to pick fruit, and that’s why they organize these periodic group harvests where they bring special fruit-picking ladders that are tripods, allowing them to get close to the trunk.

“I would say that about half the apples are only accessible through ladders or fruit pickers,” Pogel said.

The orchard has some young pawpaw and persimmon trees that should begin producing fruit soon, and Pogel said the orchard committee plans to plant a black raspberry patch, too.

“We definitely want a wide diversity of fruit,” Pogel said. “We have primarily apples in the orchard even though we planted an equal number of pears and apples. Severe fire blight has killed a lot of the pear trees over the years.”

Though the orchard is not certified organic, the committee members do not use chemical sprays to control weeds or insects. It does not rely on synthetic fertilizers either, and Pogel said they plan to use the kind of fertilizers that are allowed under organic conditions like copper sulphate and other plant-based oils to keep the pests down.

“Pests are a significant challenge for pretty much all orchard businesses, and that’s why commercial orchards spray,” Pogel said. “We are volunteer-based, and thus don’t have the bandwidth to manage it as thoroughly as we’d like.”

Pogel said he and the other orchard committee members feel that the superior quality of fruit grown without spraying makes up for the fruit lost to pests.

“Having a fresh orchard where the fruit has some blemishes, or where you have to cut out a wormy section, is far better than no fruit at all or going to the store and getting nice-looking fruit but that doesn’t have the same level of flavor,” Pogel said.

The orchard has been financed by money from the Nady Conservation Committee, and last year the orchard received a $1,000 grant from the city’s Local Option Sales Tax that the committee used to purchase plants and to rebuild the informational kiosk at the orchard.

Those who wish to learn more about the orchard can visit its Facebook page or email fruityfairfield@gmail.com. Pogel said the committee plans to hold pruning workshops in the spring, and hopes to organize some “work parties” to clear out weeds and plant a black raspberry patch.

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Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com

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