HOULTON, Maine – There were 62 old and new varieties of Maine grown apples on display at the biannual Aroostook Apple Day on Saturday in Houlton.
The apples on display at the Unitarian Church Cup Cafe were grown at the Maine Heritage Orchard, said Angie Wotton, district manager of the Southern Aroostook Soil and Water Conservation District, the organizer of the event.
“It’s been a rough year for apples,” she said while turning the manual handle on an historic cider press that Dee Cote of Littleton brought to the event from the Southern Aroostook Agricultural Museum in Littleton.
Fire blight, a destructive bacterial disease, has affected some orchards locally, Wotton said, adding that it’s important for growers to recognize the signs and know about ways to manage it. And during Saturday’s event, C.J. Walke, Maine Organic Farmers and Growers Association’s orchard program manager, led a workshop on proactive management of the disease.
This is the first time the biannual event has been held since COVID-19, said Unitarian minister Dave Hutchinson, the event host, adding that the Cup Cafe was serving apple themed baked goods and even a squash and apple soup on Saturday.
The Maine Heritage Orchard is a 10-acre preservation educational orchard located at the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association in Unity. It is home to over 300 apple and pear varieties – many had previously been on the verge of extinction – from all 16 Maine counties dating back to 1630.
On Saturday the orchard provided unique varieties for tasting such as the Claus’ Driveway Crab, Hayford Sweet, Golden Russet, Liberty and Centennial to name a few.
A big draw was the mystery apple, that urged tasters to guess what it was.
“It’s really tart,” one person said.
“It’s really sweet,” said another.
But the only one to say accurately that it was a Quince was Parker Smith of Blaine who, along with his family, is growing 200 apple trees with 70 mostly heirloom varieties including Api Etoille, an old French apple.
A quince is an ancient fruit originally native to Iran, Turkey and Greece. It grows on a small rose-like bush and tastes like a cross between an apple and a pear. Well known for enhancing culinary specialities like the Persian dish, khoresh-e-beh.
Smith said they started planting their apples four years ago and if they are lucky may be able to harvest some apples by next year. But it generally takes up to eight years for an apple tree to produce fruit after planting, he said.
He pointed out that the current year’s harvest is always reflective of last year’s weather and the length of the tree’s root stock can be an indicator of how long it will take for the tree to produce fruit.
Stevens said they buy their trees from Fedco Seeds, a Maine-based cooperative based in Clinton.
“We sent them our address and they sent us heirloom varieties to match our location,” he said.
During Saturday’s mostly educational event, there were also four growing workshops presented by state experts. And the Maine Farmland Trust was there to connect with Aroostook farmers, said Ellen Sabini, director of farmer engagement. .
