It’s been a hard year for apple growers in Nova Scotia. Between 40 and 50 per cent of apple crops were lost in the province this year, according to the Nova Scotia Fruit Growers’ Association.
Larry Lutz, the association’s president, said in a phone interview from New Glasgow, N.S., that below-freezing temperatures in June played a big part, and the hardest-hit crops were in areas at low elevations.
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Phil Daniels, the owner of Daniels U-Pick, said that 99 per cent of his crops died due to freezing temperatures in June, resulting in about a 75 per cent drop in sales.
“People just aren’t coming out because they know I got hit by frost,” he said in an interview at his Windsor, N.S., operation.
He has put a spin on the problem, telling visiting children they’re in for a game of hide-and-seek to find the remaining apples, Daniels said.
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Produce has been brought in from elsewhere to sell to customers, he said, so customers don’t have to leave empty-handed.
Daniels said he’s been in business for 42 years and despite this difficult year, he expects his trees will grow better next year because of this sabbatical of sorts.
“Always have hope. There’s always hope,” he said.
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