Aug 4, 2015Crop damage: Northern Michigan orchards are ‘devastated’
On Aug. 2 a storm swept through Northern Michigan leaving fruit crops “devastated.” Large hail and damaging winds have been reported throughout the area.
Apple, grape and tart cherry crops were left in shambles — a Michigan State University researcher called it “heartbreaking.”
“I feel for the growers who have taken care of these apples since April. To lose them two or three months before harvest is pretty devastating.”There are no dollar estimates of damage yet, said Extension Specialist Nikki Rothwell, coordinator of Michigan State University Extension Service research station.
Hail and high winds that came in three storms between Sunday noon and 6 p.m. shredded leaves and in some cases, tore down the trellises that hold up the densely-grown trees, Rothwell said.
Apple growers saw a lot of damage to the fruit on their trees from hail. “It looks like there are huge slits in the fruit,”Rothwell said. “My guess is that they are going to rot off the trees.”
Tart cherry crops that were still being harvested were blown off of trees by wind and damaged by hail, prompting some growers to work through the night to salvage as much of their crop as possible, she said.
For vineyards on the Old Mission Peninsula, the storms added insult to injury, Rothwell said. Grape yields are down for the second year in a row because of the harsh winter.
“There’s not a lot of grapes out there and the ones that got hit by hail are just devastated,”she said.
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