At Applecrest Farm Orchards in Hampton Falls, Todd Wagner is working long hours to prepare for a busy fall season of tractor rides, cider donuts, and, of course, apple picking.
But this year’s weather – a wet spring followed by a statewide drought – means the apple trees may need a few days longer than usual to be ready for picking. Wagner says apple crops need consistent water and cool weather to reach the size and colors customers expect.
“Because of the heat and because of the lack of cool nights, it just seems to sort of delay the progress of where the apples would normally be at this time of year,” he said.
But, he said, apples are resilient – and he’s optimistic that this year’s crop will be good. Plus, he grows about 50 varieties, so if one isn’t ready, another might be.
The conditions this year are tough, but not unique.
Wagner says he’s been working to manage changing weather for several years. Applecrest has an irrigation system in place. But Wagner has had to be strategic in his watering.
“I literally have fish flopping around on the bottom of our irrigation ponds. I mean, they're effectively empty,” he said. “Because the apples are fairly resilient, we’ve been focusing the water on our berry crops and our peach crop.”
As climate change heats up the atmosphere and the state’s average temperatures rise, New Hampshire’s growing season has gotten longer.
“The downside is that we're also at the same time seeing some pretty dramatic adverse conditions,” Wagner said, like drought, late-spring frosts, and severe rain.
New Hampshire is generally getting wetter with climate change. But instead of that rain being spread out, it is coming in more extreme individual events – and warmer summers can lead to longer dry periods.
Jeremy Delisle, a field specialist with the University of New Hampshire’s Cooperative Extension, said farmers across the state are troubled by the drought – but they’ve been preparing for years.
“We tend to be getting more and more familiar with these sorts of field conditions,” he said. “I think a lot of people have taken proactive measures to be in better shape going into drought conditions as the years have gone by.”
Farmers have made changes like cover cropping and reducing the amount that they till, which can support healthier soil that can hold more water. Moving towards different pest management strategies and transitioning to drip irrigation instead of overhead irrigation have also helped, Delisle said.
At Carter Hill Orchard in Concord, Robert Larocque expanded his irrigation system this year, increasing his pond from one million gallons to about four million gallons. His apples are bigger than normal this year because of the regular watering.
“Last year we lost our crop to hail,” he said. But Carter Hill’s customers were supportive, he said. “So we’d like to give them a good crop that they could pick and be happy with. And right now we have that.”
Diane Souther, at Apple Hill Farm in Concord, said her apples are also doing well. Some are smaller than usual, but they’re coming along, she said.
“During the hot weather, we were getting really concerned because things weren't growing. We weren't getting rain. But then we had a couple of little showers that came through and the weather dropped down to these nice, cool nights. And that's exactly what the apples love,” she said.
Souther said Apple Hill has started planting new apple varieties, like Wildfire Gala, that fare better in the hotter summers New Hampshire is experiencing.
“They're a nice medium apple. They're very juicy,” she said. “And the color is unbelievable. It’s almost a candy apple red.”
Deslisle, the UNH field specialist, says all the changes growers make to cope with difficult weather require money and a lot of effort.
“Now it’s our turn to go out there and really support them and thank them for the work that they’ve done to provide us with such great food as we go into fall.”
