PICKING TIME
Apple season in full swing at family-run Bowman Orchards
CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. » Apple season is a full-fledged family affair at Bowman Orchards in Clifton Park.
Kevin Bowman and his wife, Martha; their son and daughter-in-law, Kenny and Megan Bowman; and daughter Katie Bowman-Oathout; all play vital roles on the farm, which Kevin’s late father, Ray, founded in 1952.
It’s all hands on deck at this time of year, during the busy you-pick season, when the payroll swells to 80 workers including local high school kids and skilled apple pickers from Jamaica.
“Being a family business has its challenges, but it also brings the family together because we have to work together,” said Bowman-Oathout, who handles office duties. “There’s a teamwork aspect of it that brings you closer together. When you see the final product, and see the business be successful, it makes you feel good.”
This year, there’s plenty of reason to smile as Mother Nature provided ideal growing conditions for a bountiful harvest, which began in late July with early varieties and will continue through till Halloween time.
“It was almost the perfect season,” Kevin Bowman said. “We had a very dry season, right after bloom, so there was good cell division in the apples. Then we had lots of moisture in July, which has given them really good size. It was the perfect
scenario.”
Like icing on the cake, this weekend’s expected drop in temperatures should also give apples lots of color, which consumers look for.
While Kevin and Kenny are busy monitoring trees, Martha Bowman is in charge of hiring and scheduling workers. She also finds time to oversee production of the farm’s homemade ice cream.
Meanwhile, Megan Bowman manages the bake shop.
“I enjoy being able to work with my in-laws, my sister-in-law and my husband, especially,” she said. “We discuss what we’re going to sell and then I decide at the end what products work and don’t work. It’s a joy to be working with them.”
Everyone involved is focused on constantly trying to improve all aspects of this second- and third-generation operation with a fourth generation -- Kevin and Martha’s young grandchildren -- coming along as well.
Quite often, this means traveling to conventions, to learn about new varieties and the latest and best growing techniques.
“You’re just constantly educating yourself,” Bowman-Oathout said. “We’ve been as far as California and Michigan, and then there’s your local ones all over the state. Cornell Cooperative Extension puts them on.”
In recent years, large old trees have been pulled out and replaced with dwarf trees grown on wire trellises.
“You want smaller trees that typically grow under seven feet,” BowmanOathout said. “The fruit is closer to the ground so kids don’t need to climb ladders. Dwarf trees also grow a lot more fruit on them, and trees don’t need as much space. So you can grow thousands of trees on a few acres, versus hundreds of trees on a lot more acreage.”
Bowman’s raises 63 different types of apples on 58 acres. The biggest sellers are Honey Crisp and McIntosh, a traditional favorite.
“About two weeks ago we started picking Zestar and Sansa, which is like Gala, but crisper,” Kevin Bowman said. “It has a very unique taste. They’re both good early apples. They’re sweet and fairly hard. Now we’re into Macs (McIntosh) and Gala. Then we’ll add Cortlands. We’ll be up to 20 varieties by the end of this month.”
For a listing of upstate New York farms and events go to: nyapplecountry.com.