All-American Apple Harvest

Apple tree, Apple Pantry Farm, Apple Hill, Camino (10/20/19) Ravi Ranganathan

As American as Apple Pie. Apples are part of our DNA. It’s no wonder, then, that so many apple growing areas attract lots of people during apple harvest.

That happens in Camino (El Dorado County) when, in 1964, farmers recognized that their apple farms could not survive selling apples in competition with other growers.

So, they copied a marketing program started in Southern California’s Oak Glen to attract apple tourists for harvest. It worked.

The Apple Hill Growers Association started with 16 growers and now has 55 ranchers, including Christmas tree growers, wineries, vineyards, a B&B and a spa.

What happens on Apple Hill is a lot of traditional orchard tending for eight months of the year, and an apple-centric part festival, part fair for the remaining four.

Each ranch has a different theme. All sell some form of apple product (candied apples, baked apple pastries, preserves, cider, etc.), fruits, nuts, honey or vegetables. Many sell unique gifts (bird houses, handcarved signs, windmills, dolls, soaps, hay and train rides and cosmetics.

What ties the farms and ranches together is an old-fashioned good time.