STURTEVANT — Apple season is underway in Wisconsin, but this year's harvest comes after a spring and summer of heavy rain, damaging storms, high heat, and humidity across Southeast Wisconsin — and not every grower has fared the same.
At Apple Holler in Racine County, owner Dave Flannery said the weather patterns have largely worked in his orchard's favor.
"We've gotten just enough rain at just the right time," Flannery said.
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Flannery described a season of weather extremes.
"A little bit of a merry-go-round as we went from, month to month, a lot of Rain in April, very little rain in May, and then more rain in June, and less rain in July," he said.
Despite the inconsistency, he said the conditions at his orchard came together well, especially with recent heat and humidity in the Racine area.
"At times, it almost seemed tropical," Flannery said. "They were good growing conditions with water and heat."
That's not the case for every grower in Racine County. Jane Hamilton at Ela Orchard in Rochester said the dry July did impact their crop.
However, Ela Orchard and Apple Holler both expressed thankfulness of missing the worst of spring and summer storms.
At Apple Holler, some apples did suffer hail damage.
"It just doesn't take much, and hail can do a lot of damage," Flannery said.
When hail strikes, it opens the door to further problems, including fungus and disease.
Frost presented challenges elsewhere in the state as well. Frost can kill blossoms, leading to less fruit production.
"There are parts of the state where even areas that normally don't get a spring frost during bloom did this year," Flannery said.
Northwestern Wisconsin suffered more severe drought conditions than Racine County.
"If they're lucky, they've got irrigation systems," Flannery said.
Apple Holler customers Monday were already enjoying the results of the luck that has shaken out for Flannery and his orchard.
Kristina Hermanson described the apples as "huge and juicy and delicious," and she and her daughter, Taytum, were particularly excited about the Honeycrisp variety.
Fellow customer Oakley Fortin said she plans to put the apples to good use.
"I am excited to use these in an apple pie. Maybe some apple turnovers," Fortin said.
Fortin and her companion Gag McNew said they plan to return to the orchard later in the season.
"We weren't able to get the Pink Ladies, but we'll probably be back in mid-October to pick up some of those more fun varieties," Fortin said.
As for how long the picking season will last, Flannery is watching the forecast closely.
"Everything I've heard is a warmer-than-normal fall, and probably a warmer-than-normal winter," Flannery said.
If conditions hold, he said the season could stretch further than usual.
"We might lengthen it another couple, two or three weeks, if we're lucky," Flannery said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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