It All Began With An Apple (or Was It a Pear?)
Quick, what do you think of when you read “apples?” Washington! Just like “potatoes” brings to mind Idaho.
The State of Washington is the top apple producing state; growing, harvesting and distributing about two-thirds of the apples sold in the US. But apples are not the only fruit that puts the state at the top of the list; Washington is also the top US producer of pears and cherries.
In 2006, there were almost a quarter of a million acres dedicated to “tree fruit” – apples, pears, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and plums. That number remains fairly static today.
The rich lava-ash soil east of the Cascade Mountains and plenty of hot summer days and cool nights, made areas like the Yakima and Columbia Valleys the perfect growing spot for orchardists. Today the average size of an orchard is about 50 acres, but some cover as many as 5,000 to 6,000 acres.
While there are approximately 10,000 varieties of apples grown in the world, and more than 7,000 varieties grown in the US, most commercial orchards grow an assortment of 9 or 10 varieties, including: Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Fuji, Gala, Braeburn, Honey Crisp, Jonagold, and Pink Lady.
