Food, health, organic,crops,wine, beer, spirits, restaurants, pubs, coffee houses in West Virginia

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AN APPLE A DAY...

Learn about one of WV's biggest crops

Fall is apple harvest time, and the Eastern Panhandle is the place for apples. Although the area is fast becoming a "bedroom community" for the Washington/Baltimore metropolitan area (Berkeley County is the 56th fastest growing county in the USA), and many of the orchards are disappearing and morphing into stark, treeless housing developments, there are still several producing apple orchards.

It is so nice to be able to go to any of the many spots where one can purchase freshly picked apples as well as other produce, and we would encourage all who possibly can to patronize not only the orchards but also any local farmers in your communities. Most of the farmers markets and orchards close their retail outlets around the end of October, so you may not be able to do this until next spring. Here's a list of orchards so you can keep them in mind.

The history of apples and other fruit in the Mountain State is an interesting one. Did you know the Golden Delicious apple originated here in West Virginia?

Granny Smith Apple

Each October the Mountain State Apple Harvest Festival is held in Berkeley County, and it is lots of fun for all who attend. If you missed it this year, put it on your calendar for next year.

Let's all make it a point to support our orchards and farmers so that they will be successful and continue to provide good crops for us and for the U.S.

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