An Apple Today

Posted on September 13, 2012 by Indiana's Cool North

Ripe apples are one of the best parts of fall in Indiana. Nothing tastes as good as a just-picked apple, unless of course it’s covered in caramel, baked into a cinnamon apple pie or mulled as cider. If you take a shine to apples, like I do, you’ll want to include a trip to the orchard this fall.

Garwood Orchards in LaPorte has been in the family for more than 180 years, and it’s still a favorite spot for apple picking. The 350-acre farm is about half fruit trees (apple, peach and cherry) and about half veggies, says Brian Garwood, who is on-site daily, along with brother Mike and cousin Tom. “We’re open from strawberry season until Halloween,” he says. The Garwood calendar isn’t measured so much by months, but by what’s growing: strawberries, then raspberries, cherries, peaches, apples and finally pumpkins.

Garwood grows 11 varieties of apples, from the early Gala to the late Fuji. But the 2012 growing season is anything but typical. “We did not really have a winter, and then the warm March means that apples are very scarce across the Midwest,” Brian says. “There are no second chances in a growing season. When you talk to some of the old-timers, they’ll tell you that this season is about as bad as they’ve seen since 1945. We probably have 25 percent of our crop, and that’s better than most orchards,” he says.

Garwood Orchards in LaPorte

Garwood grows 11 varieties of apples, from the early Gala to the late Fuji. But the 2012 growing season is anything but typical. “We did not really have a winter, and then the warm March means that apples are very scarce across the Midwest,” Brian says. “There are no second chances in a growing season. When you talk to some of the old-timers, they’ll tell you that this season is about as bad as they’ve seen since 1945. We probably have 25 percent of our crop, and that’s better than most orchards,” he says.

“The good news is that you can still come out and get the experience of picking an apple from a tree. Because we have so many acres of apples, we still have plenty to pick. The bad news is that certain varieties are limited, especially Honey Crisp,” he laments. “Cider prices are going to really be affected. Where a gallon of cider may have cost $4.95 last year, it may be $7.95 or $8.95 this year,” he says.

Ride a wagon pulled by draft horses to the orchards, and listen to live music in the fall. Their doughnuts are another (albeit less healthy!) attraction. “But we’re still growers, not entertainers,” Brian says.

Wagon ride at Garwood

Freelance writer Kim Ranegar is from Valparaiso and bakes a mean apple crisp.