LITTLETON, Maine — Celebrate fruit varieties for the north with Aroostook Apple Day, Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016 from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Southern Aroostook Agricultural Museum.
The event is free and open to the public, offering education and fun. Workshops begin at noon and include “Apple Varieties for the North,” “Growing Plums,” Organic Pest and Disease Management for the Home Orchard” with CJ Walke of MOFGA, and “Pear Varieties.”
Ongoing activities include apple and pear tastings, cider pressing, apple identification, and an opportunity to see displays of many fruit varieties.
Participants should bring and share a few of their own favorite known and unknown varieties that grow in the area. Those who may have an old apple tree or wild seedling they enjoy but don’t know what kind of apples it grows, can identify their apples as Maine apple guru John Bunker will be on hand using his extensive knowledge of Maine apples to identify the variety.
In addition, Ken Bustard will have his hand-built cider press available to help you press your own fruit. Please bring only fruit (that has been washed) picked from a tree, along with containers to take the cider home. Vendors will also be selling local goods such as baked items, pumpkins, honey, gourds, garlic, cheese, fruit trees and more.
The event is hosted by the Southern Aroostook Soil and Water Conservation District and sponsored by Maine Farmland Trust, Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Assoc., and Fedco Trees. For a complete listing of classes, presenters, and activities, including how to bring apple samples in for John Bunker to identify, contact the SASWCD at 532-9407 x 3 or go to www.saswcd.org.
