Chasing the trickle-down effect

What if summer-like temperatures in April brought a flurry of fruit tree blossoms, followed by a temperature drop to the 20s that resulted in a hard freeze that not even the best frost protection could mitigate?

Growers in several states, including Maryland, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia, are dealing with the results of the unusual weather pattern, and many will be shifting management practices beyond this season.

Penn State’s Fruit Research & Extension Center in Adams County, PA, recently hosted government officials listen to growers’ concerns. Among those present were Glenn “GT” Thompson, chair of the House Ag Committee, and Richard Fordyce, USDA-FSA administrator.

“We have specialty crop operations in every state, and significant ones in states you wouldn’t think of,” Fordyce said. “We are trying to learn and be better at understanding the specialty crop business.”

Lancaster, PA, grower Corey McLeaf, Cherry Hill Orchards, found two peaches on 40 acres of trees. About 5% of his apple crop remains but is severely damaged, and the few intact cherries were eaten by birds. McCleaf noted excess vegetative growth driven by lack of fruit, which translates to fire blight susceptibility. While McCleaf can rely on his retail farm market to fill the income gap, many growers are producers only and don’t have backup income.

Grower Ben Lerew, Lerew Brothers Orchard in York Springs, PA, reported blocks with no fruit and others with 100% crop.

“It doesn’t matter if loss is 10% or 100% – the spray bill is the same,” Lerew said. “Right now, we have one goal: to not lose shelf space in the grocery store. Labor will be an issue and there will be more hand thinning expense. We aren’t sure how trees will respond to additional thinning.”

Rice Fruit Company of Gardners, PA, packs and ships fresh fruit throughout the year. Company President Ben Rice explained that harvested fruit is held in large, specialized storage facilities for packing and shipping throughout the year.

“From a packer perspective, we go to resolving a dilemma with what fruit is left,” Rice said. “The national market is not necessarily experiencing the same losses. The margin we need to operate to get a higher return for the grower is super tight. The overriding theme is the direct financial losses of this year. Spray costs are the same for 10 apple trees or 100,000 trees.”

Rice was prepared to begin construction on an additional storage facility, but that’s on hold for now. He’s also concerned about having to lay off employees, especially because that action will likely result in losing highly experienced workers.

“This area has been growing apples for a long time,” Rice said. “Washington State grows a lot of apples and is pushing into this area. If we don’t have enough fruit to participate, even in a modest way, we are going to lose shelf space to other regions and it’s very difficult to get it back.”

He noted that while growers have crop insurance to cover some losses, packers are not growers and don’t have the option to purchase such insurance.

Another trickle-down aspect involves nursery stock availability. Jen Benton, president of Adams County Nursery (ACN) in Aspers, PA, said that 55,000 apple transplants were prepared for orders just prior to the freeze and about half were destroyed. In addition to direct revenue loss for the nursery, many growers’ orders won’t be fulfilled. This ripple effect will impact ACN until 2029.

Benton relayed information about a survey conducted by the State Horticultural Association of Pennsylvania (SHAP) that revealed growers’ concerns regarding the cost of trucking in peaches and apples to maintain customer base and seasonal staff.

Penn State plant pathologist Dr. Kari Peter noted that weakened trees are more vulnerable to opportunistic fungal pathogens, which could be related to fluctuating winter temperatures. She also explained to Thompson and Fordyce that conditions for fire blight were ideal this spring and how the disease is the result of no signal to shut off vegetative growth, leaving trees vulnerable to other issues.

“The week before the freeze it was summer,” Peter said. “Then we dropped 60 degrees, and everything hit a brick wall. That didn’t just affect fruit – trees are suffering as well. Borers are attracted by ethanol from the trees, and they drag in fungi that choke out the tree. We also had major rain events, and rain washes bacteria into the flowers. With the horrific conditions, disease being out there and all the vegetative growth, it’s the perfect storm.”

Dr. Shan Kumar, assistant professor of tree fruit, Penn State, discussed financial losses resulting from the unusual weather.

“Before the freeze hit, there was already a cost of $250 to $500 per acre,” Kumar said. “That includes early season nutrition, disease and insect management sprays, diesel fuel for frost protection and equipment. After that, there are mowing costs and herbicide applications. One of the biggest costs is dormant pruning, and that might take longer this year due to vigorous growth. Growers still must provide nutrition to prepare for the next season along with foliar disease management and insecticide sprays.”

Kumar estimates costs and total variable operating expenses amount to about $1,650/acre, not including fixed costs such as insurance, infrastructure and overhead expenses. Not all trees will recover in one year, and that excessive pruning after a vigorous crop will likely result in more growth to manage.

Thompson said the federal government and USDA have decades of experience with commodities. He said the first Farm Bill to pay serious attention to specialty crops was in 2014, with improvements in 2018 and further expansions on the horizon. He was involved in the effort to expand the definition of “farmer” to include crop insurance for associated businesses, which would help packers.

After hearing how difficult this and upcoming seasons will be for many growers, Fordyce explained that RMA is authorizing Approved Insurance Providers (AIPs) to finalize producer and packer claims prior to final disposition of the crop on a case-by-case basis. This will allow producers to make harvest and marketing decisions for any salvageable, damaged crop based on what makes sense for their operation.

“If you have fruit, depending on percentage, [growers] can take full indemnity on what the crop is insured for,” Fordyce said. “If a crop turns out to be more than expected, they can settle up afterwards.”

According to USDA, as of July 6, 2026, additional emergency relief will be available for apple growers in Maryland, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia who experienced a catastrophic late-April freeze.

For details on available emergency relief, visit this website.

by Sally Colby