Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/52389
improves for N.C. growers T Outlook he view from the high hill behind the packing shed at Apple Wedge Packing is worth climbing to see. Until two years ago, stunning views like that were one of the reasons owner Greg Nix wasn't planting new apple orchards, and was, in fact, pushing out some old ones. All around Hendersonville, North Carolina, hilltops were coveted for conver- sion to house sites. Nix's Apple Hill Orchards near Edneyville could have become just another clever name for a suburb. Now, with the bloom off the housing market, this old apple-growing area is settling back a bit, and Greg, a fifth-generation apple grower, is putting in some new trees. Greg packs about 200,000 boxes of apples a year, under the Apple Good apple sites are also good view sites, which was a cause of conflict. by Richard Lehnert Wedge brand name. About half the apples are from his production, and the other half comes from 15 to 20 smaller growers he packs for. Apple Wedge Packing and Cider is the largest fresh apple packer in North Carolina. Apples have to move up and down the roads, as do tractors and sprayers. Residential development threatens not just the land but shapes the environment in which the farmers operate. The apple growers around Hendersonville have their hands full already dealing with their natural environment; the hills and valleys are a difficult-to-manage asset. The orchard plantings tend to follow the contours of the steep hill- sides. And while the growers don't build terraces, they flatten the alleys somewhat between rows after the trees are planted. Standing in an alley, one looks up at one row of trees and down at the next one. Despite the terrain, Nix built his own self-leveling platform and uses it for pruning and other orchard operations, like stretching wire, even on the hillsides. Space for the packing house and storage was literally carved out of a mountain. "A lot of buildings in Henderson County sit on Apple Hill soil," Greg said about all the earth moving that went on. The original packing plant was built in 1983, then rejuvenated in 1997 when Greg added a four-lane electronic sorter and sizer with capability to put apples into trays or bags. In 2009, the plant was expanded with the addition of 9,000 square feet of apple cold storage and a treatment area for application of MCP. Most North Carolina apples are sold by the end of the production season, but Nix carries packing into early winter. Fresh market Historically, North Carolina was a pro- cessing apple producing area forced by changing circumstances to shift to the fresh market. Greg grew up working on the farm while in high school in the 1970s. Then, it was owned by his grandfather, who worked it with Greg's uncle. His own father, an electrician, was not part of the operation. In the early 1980s, Greg joined with the uncle, and, together, they expanded the apple operation and began the packing business. 24 JANUARY 15, 2012 GOOD FRUIT GROWER Greg Nix and his wife, Lisa, are sole owners of Apple Hill Orchard and Apple Wedge Packing and Cider. RichaRd LehneRt