According to the Asheville Citizen-Times, Wintertime highs in the 60s and lows above freezing might seem delightful for the average Joe, but it’s a nightmare for local fruit growers.
With 5,000 acres of apple orchards and a $25 million crop on the line, Henderson County’s 150 growers want an extended cold snap, quick.
Blooms already are busting out on peach trees and apple trees have reached the “silver tip” stage that precedes full bloom, meaning growers don’t have much time before trees go into early bloom.
Such early development leaves fruit trees susceptible to a devastating freeze later on.
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