Organic apples await the picking public near Ripon. A few tips on doing it right
Six-year-old Constantine Lee paid his second visit in as many years to an apple orchard near Ripon.
“I just picked some apples — look at that!” he declared to extended family members who joined him at Lucky You Orchards on Saturday, Sept. 10.
The pick-your-own operation is the latest venture for the Chinchiolo family, which has farmed in the area for about 100 years. And it’s organic, another selling point for some consumers.
Lucky You invites the public to harvest apples on weekends in September and October, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The cost is $2.99 per pound. The farm is on Carrolton Road just north of River Road.
U-pick is a tiny slice of Central Valley fruit production, most of which goes to supermarket produce aisles, canneries, freezing or drying.
But the niche can provide new income streams for farmers while showing consumers exactly where their food was grown.
“We encourage everybody to channel their best inner farmer,” said Andrea Chinchiolo, part of the fourth generation.
Apples for hard cider, too
She and her father, Steve, guided The Modesto Bee around. Her brothers, Alex and Adam, also work in the family fruit business. It includes cherries near Lodi — a U-pick site in late spring — along with summer plums and pluots harvested by pros.
The Chinchiolos sell at the Modesto farmers market and several in the Bay Area. They also make hard cider in Richmond from some of their apples.
Lucky You is now in its third U-pick year for apples. It offered Fuji, Granny Smith and Modi apples on the day Constantine’s family visited from Merced.
“They like to pick apples, and they like to eat them, too,” said Padee Xiong, mother of Constantine and his 2-year-old sister, Vyolette.
‘Low-hanging fruit’ awaits
Visitors cannot use ladders, for safety’s sake, but they can take whatever is within reach from the ground.
“We come in with (hired) apple pickers who actually pick the top of the trees, leaving the low-hanging fruit for folks,” Andrea said.
The farmers offered a few tips for amateurs:
- An apple is ready if the background hue is golden, behind the speckles and stripes.
- The picker should hold the branch bearing the apple with one hand and twist the fruit with the other.
- Visitors should bring sturdy shoes, hats, sunscreen and insect repellent.
October will mean Pink Lady, Gold Rush and Crimson Gold apples, along with Halloween pumpkins from a nearby grower.
Lucky You offers free rides on a string of wagons pulled by a tractor named Old Blue.
Ladybugs do their part
Organic farmers cannot use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. The Chinchiolos enrich their soil with compost and chicken manure. Pest control includes releasing ladybugs and other helpful insects to devour the undesirables.
“It’s actually helped us become better farmers because of the attention to detail that you have to have,” Andrea said.
The Chinchiolos grow about 15 varieties of apples for their Far West Cider label. They are not sweet enough for the U-pick crowd but are ideal for fermenting. The cidery is in a former shipyard overlooking San Francisco Bay.
This story was originally published September 16, 2022 at 8:00 AM.
