Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/590163
34 NOVEMBER 2015 GOOD FRUIT GROWER www.goodfruit.com for the nation's supply of grape juice, jam, and jelly. Washington State has fewer Concord acres (26,000), but leads the nation in volume produced. Typically, spring frosts are the biggest threat to the area's grape industry, Martin said during a Good Fruit Grower visit to his regional research and extension sta- tion near Portland, New York, this summer. Because the lake keeps the region cooler in spring and warmer in the fall, frosts are less likely to damage the crop. "It's why we're here," Martin said. But the last two winters have been hard ones across the Great Lakes region, putting a severe test on grapes of all kinds. Last winter, a low temperature of -29.9°F set a record in the Concord Belt, killing some wine grape varieties, root and vine, and even taking a toll on the normally winter hardy Concords and Niagaras as well. "We saw significant damage to vinifera and some ten- der hybrids and also some Niagaras," Martin said. It was not just the extreme low temperature on one date in the winter of 2014-2015 that hurt; temperatures fell to -12° to -15°F several times during the winter before that, he said. "Some of the vinifera were so damaged they produced no suckers and will need to be replanted—if growers choose to replant. Some have decided it is time to rethink and change," he said. Across the Great Lakes region generally, a 40-year warming trend—including milder winters—induced wine-grape growers into planting the less cold hardy but better-for-wine-making vinifera varieties. Small winer- ies, driven by favorable changes to state laws, also helped demand for vinifera and hybrids. The last two winters have served to weed out those varieties and sites that can't make it. Juice in decline But low temperatures are just half the problem in the Concord Belt. The other is low prices and a loss of buyers in the juice grape market. The market for juice grapes has been eroding for several years as consumers backed away from high- sugar drinks and from Concord grape products like jam and jelly, Martin said. Other fruit juices have fared poorly as well. Fighting back, juice makers have come up with interesting new flavors, like cranberry-apple, but Concord juice is so intensely flavorful it overwhelms, rather than blends. The severity of the market and weather-related disasters faced by the grape industry have been PHOTO COURTESY LUKE HAGGERTY Juice grape harvest has been totally mechanized since the 1970s. W W W.W I L L A M E T T E N U R S E R I E S .C O M ( 503 ) 263-6405 TOLL FREE: ( 800 ) 852-2018 Prunus avium/P. mahaleb M.106/M.7/M.26/B.118 Gisela Series Kyrmsk Series OHxF Series Geneva® Series M.9 Clones CANBY, OREGON are planted with the most popular seedling, semi-dwarf and dwarf varieties: Like our rootstock, our service will grow on you. All Fruit tree rootstock is Oregon certified virus-free. We also grow a great selection of rootstock varieties for apple, peach pear and plum including: MALUS ANTONOVKA MALUS DOMESTICA PRUNUS PERSICA 'LOVELL' PRUNUS CERASIFERA PRUNUS MARIANA PRUNUS MYROBALAN PYRUS CALLERYANA PYRUS COMMUNIS PYRUS USSERIENSIS PROVENCE QUINCE APPLE PEACH PLUM PEAR 2921 Sutherland Park Drive Yakima, Wa 98903 509-248-0318 FAX: 509-248-0914 hfhauff@gmail.com • www.hfhauff.com Not all fan blades are created equal! Discover the CHINOOK FAN BLADE ADVANTAGE! 2921 Sutherland Park Drive Yakima, Wa 98903 H.F. HAUFF COMPANY INC. FORD TRITON V-10 or IVECO NEF 6.7 DIESEL ★ Air Flow Starts 14 inches from Hub ★ Increased Radius Coverage by 80-150 Feet with Same HP Draw ★ Wider Sector Angle with Increased Air Velocity ★ LESS FUEL CONSUMPTION Superior Coverage Judge for yourself Satisfaction Guaranteed!