Apples, and Peaches, and Donuts, Oh My!

Spring Fling

2010-03-26T12:10:00.004-04:00

How can it be the end of March already? Spring is such a busy time in the orchard! The warm temperatures have come on so quickly that everything is happening at one time! Peach trees are getting ready to bloom, apple trees won't be far behind, and we are cleaning the Country Store getting ready for our spring opening!

Opening Day at Carter Mountain will be on April 16th! We'll be open on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 10-5, til the middle of June. We'll then start our 7 day/week schedule. While there is no Pick Your Own fruit available in the spring, you'll be able to visit our Wine Shop, get some donuts from the bakery, check out the new merchandise in our Country Store, and enjoy the view.

On April 17th and 18th, we'll hold our first annual Spring Fling Festival! We've got crafters, food, music, wine, and hayrides lined up for your outdoor pleasure. Come on out for some outdoor fun - we are all so ready for it after the winter we've just come through!

Visit our website for more information. And, become our fan on Facebook! See you soon!

Cold Snowy Winter

2010-02-01T17:36:00.002-05:00

We get lots of questions this time of year about how the winter weather affects our crops. We appreciate our customer's concerns! This winter, we've had more precipitation than the past several winters, both in the form of snow (about 32 inches so far this year) and rain (we had flooding here just last week!). This is good, as the ground water is being replenished, and we'll appreciate that especially this summer, when things heat up! The cold temperatures are good right now as well. Both apple and peach trees require a certain number of "chill hours" each winter, in order to produce fruit. Some winters, when it's especially warm, it's a struggle to meet the requirements (this sounds like WE can control this, and we can't!). Dormancy is a part of the life cycle of the trees, and is very important. So, while this weather may not delight everyone, it's certainly been a good thing for the orchards so far.

Now, when spring comes, the story will change! And we'll be sure to let you know.

In the meantime, stay warm, dry, safe, and enjoy the beauty of winter. Spring will be here before you know it!

2010-01-05T13:36:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year! My resolution is to do a better job keeping up with our blog! Wishing you and yours a healthy and peaceful new year, and look for more blog posts very soon!

Peach Picking at Carter Mountain

2009-06-20T17:10:00.003-04:00

Things are picking up on the mountain! Our first peaches are now available for picking! These are yellow clingstone peaches, very sweet and delicious! We also have fresh picked nectarines, white peaches, and summer Lodi apples! Yippee, summer is here!

Eula has been making peach donuts, and baking pies - choose from peach, cherry, or apple. Our ice cream sales are brisk - it's a delicious treat on a hot afternoon. And cider slushies! Peach, or Muscadine (grape). Head on up soon!

Now open daily - Monday through Saturday from 9-6, Sundays 10-5.

New Friends, New Customers

2009-06-02T19:54:00.003-04:00

Though we've only been open a few weekends so far this year, we've already made lots of new friends (customers)! These ladies live in Ohio, and have already visited us on 2 weekends this spring (and twice each of those two weekends!). They've shopped, tasted and bought wine, and even take our famous pies home with them each time they visit! (It's a 7 hour trip). These are some loyal friends!

Come join in the fun at Carter Mountain - currently open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 10-5. Beginning June 12th, our summer hours begin (hours daily 9-6). See you soon!

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-05-25T16:02:00.004-04:00

Virginia Apples still available
Hope you had a chance to visit us this Memorial Day weekend! The weather has been great, the Country Store is stocked, and the wine is flowing in the Carter Mountain Wine Shop!

Christian and Pam are happy to pour you a taste!

Gift Selection and a peek at the view from the Wine Shop

We're open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays (and today, Memorial Day) from 10-5. Beginning June 12th, we'll be open 7 days a week from 9-6. Check out the photos to see what's happening this weekend!

Our Country Store is stocked with Gourmet Foods, Local Crafts, Jams and Jellies, and More!

Weekends are Delightful at Carter Mountain!

2009-05-07T20:37:00.002-04:00

The view is great at Carter Mountain this time of year! After this week's rain, everything is gorgeous, green, and fresh! Our bakery is making some killer berry donuts (real fruit right in the batter), delicious pies, and cookies. The wine shop is open, and we've got lots of good stuff in the Country Store! Enjoy Mothers Day this weekend - bring Mom to the mountain!

We are Open!

2009-04-18T20:57:00.004-04:00

Carter Mountain Orchard is now open for the season! What a beautiful weekend for our spring debut! The apple trees are in bloom, the wine shop is open, we've had good crowds, and everyone is enjoying spending some time in the orchard this spring!

We're offering apples for sale, the Country Store is open, we're baking up pies, cookies, and donuts, and the view is spectacular.

Come see us on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 10-5. Enjoy these photos of our preparations, the bloom, and the donuts! Hope to see you soon.

Happy Easter

2009-04-10T12:48:00.005-04:00

The first apples are blooming on Carter Mountain! Some of the early varieties are starting to show pink, and a few have actually opened up in the past couple of days. Another sure sign of spring!

We've put bee hives in the orchard so that the apples can pollinate. There aren't enough natural bees here, so we have to rent the bees! The bees will stay in the orchard for about 10 days to 2 weeks, and hopefully they will do their job and a good crop of apples will set.

We are busy getting the Country Store, Wine Shop, and Bakery ready for business. We're cleaning, painting, and re-stocking! Don't forget, we will be open on weekends (Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays) beginning NEXT Friday, April 17th! We'll be open from 10-5, so come by to see the apples in bloom, taste the Carter Mountain Wine, browse in Country Store, and grab a pie and some donuts!

Happy Easter~

Have you been to Spring Valley Orchard yet?

2009-04-06T16:57:00.004-04:00

Some of you may remember that we opened a new location for Pick Your Own Sweet Cherries last summer. Spring Valley Orchard, in Afton VA, is located about 30 minutes from Carter Mountain. Here we grow a wonderful selection of sweet cherries. Our picking season was about 40 days last summer (early June through mid-July) and we are hoping for the same or longer this year.

The cherries are in full bloom right now, and we the bees are busy "working" the blooms. We have to bring in hives of bees each season to assist with pollination, as there are not enough natural bees in this area anymore to succesfully pollinate our crops. (The lack of honeybees, and colony collapse disease, is a big problem nationwide - if you're interested, here is a report from Penn State University http://aginfo.psu.edu/news/2007/1/HoneyBees.htm).

We are also grafting some cherry trees to change over some varieties that don't grow as well in our area. These pictures show the new bud wood grafted onto these trees which are about 7-8 years old.

We have below freezing temperatures expected in the next 2-3 nights, and we are hopeful that Mother Nature will see fit to leave our cherries alone! We'll keep you posted!

Peach Trees in Bloom

2009-03-30T21:52:00.007-04:00

Our peaches have started to bloom! Some of the earlier varieties are showing some beautiful blossoms - check out the photos. The peaches on these trees will ripen in early-mid August.

Our apple trees are starting to leaf out now - the blossoms will begin to push out soon.

As you can see, it was a gorgeous day today. Sunny and 60s, a bit windy, a great day!

Rainy Day!

2009-03-26T14:39:00.004-04:00

It's raining! We are so happy to see some precipitation today. It's been a dry winter. Here is a picture of the view today.

The peach and apple trees have not bloomed yet, but with a couple of warm days, it will be happening soon. We will be posting photos and updates as the bloom occurs.

Today is a day for us to catch up on some indoor work. We are repairing equipment, changing oil in the tractors, taking inventory of supplies and stock, and readying our machinery for spring work.

Stay warm and enjoy this wet day!

It's still winter in Virginia

2009-03-13T16:28:00.002-04:00

Yes, we've got Spring Fever, but this morning we woke up to a reminder that winter is still here! A lovely snow blanketed our area this morning, including the orchard and vineyard on Carter Mountain. Here are a few photos - most of you don't see the orchard when it looks like this!

2009-03-05T15:45:00.004-05:00

Welcome to the Carter Mountain Orchard blog! We look forward to keeping you up to date on what's going on in the orchard, and our area. Check back often for updates (or better yet, subscribe to this blog so you will always be in the know!).

We had several inches of snow earlier this week, and now it's melting fast (read, MUD!). With the warm temperatures that are predicted for this weekend, the trees will really start start thinking spring and we'll be watching them carefully for buds! The pruning is complete, and we are readying the barn, bakery, and wine shop for our SPRING opening this year! We will be open on weekends (Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays) from 10-5, beginning April 17th. It will be here before we know it!

Enjoy this sunset photo! It's one of our favorites.......