Mail Order Organic Apples
Posted by Steve Hamblin
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Mail Order Organic Apples October 21, 2014 06:56PM | Registered: 8 years ago Posts: 4 |
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Re: Mail Order Organic Apples October 24, 2014 02:59AM | Moderator Registered: 10 years ago Posts: 621 |
I'd like to turn this more towards a community grower's discussion on mail order apples as befitting this forum.
The expense of a compartmentalized box with individual apples packed in paper straw, then shipped for fast delivery, is way up there. That in turn warrants selecting the most select fruits ... while meanwhile on the local front ... I encourage customers to be a wee bit more accepting of minor spotting and the errant feeding sting (where absolutely no bug will be found). Not that most holistic apples aren't "perfect looking" as well. Still, I like seeing people involved with the assorted challenges, and mail order expectations ends that sort of sharing. This is me, indeed. Others may be finding reasonable ways to accomplish shipping healthy-grown, tree-ripened, nutrient-dense apples in a grassroots fashion.
Meanwhile, I have shipped apples in bulk to family and some of the important supporters of our community orchard movement. Each fruit is wrapped in newspaper, and the works packed en masse in a flat rate priority mail box. People say the apples come through great. What have others done? Lessons learned? Price charged? There is a legitimate marketing niche here for small growers, especially as a means of sharing outstanding regional varieties with folks who moved away to places like Florida.
I can tell Steve about the one and only organic orchard I know of featuring mail order sales, and that's Jersy Boyz in north central Washington. Wynne and Scotty are accomplished growers, and you gotta love that rattlesnake on their custom logo!
Lost Nation Orchard
Zone 4b in New Hampshire
The expense of a compartmentalized box with individual apples packed in paper straw, then shipped for fast delivery, is way up there. That in turn warrants selecting the most select fruits ... while meanwhile on the local front ... I encourage customers to be a wee bit more accepting of minor spotting and the errant feeding sting (where absolutely no bug will be found). Not that most holistic apples aren't "perfect looking" as well. Still, I like seeing people involved with the assorted challenges, and mail order expectations ends that sort of sharing. This is me, indeed. Others may be finding reasonable ways to accomplish shipping healthy-grown, tree-ripened, nutrient-dense apples in a grassroots fashion.
Meanwhile, I have shipped apples in bulk to family and some of the important supporters of our community orchard movement. Each fruit is wrapped in newspaper, and the works packed en masse in a flat rate priority mail box. People say the apples come through great. What have others done? Lessons learned? Price charged? There is a legitimate marketing niche here for small growers, especially as a means of sharing outstanding regional varieties with folks who moved away to places like Florida.
I can tell Steve about the one and only organic orchard I know of featuring mail order sales, and that's Jersy Boyz in north central Washington. Wynne and Scotty are accomplished growers, and you gotta love that rattlesnake on their custom logo!
Lost Nation Orchard
Zone 4b in New Hampshire
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Re: Mail Order Organic Apples October 27, 2014 02:29AM | Registered: 9 years ago Posts: 271 |
We have shipped apples over the last 2 years to a very limited degree. Not even dealing with the sustainability of the exercise, I concur, it sure is a pricey shipment. Typically if you are charging 2.50 a pound, you can bet it will be 5 bucks by the time it gets there.
What we have found is that it is a great and affordable way to taste an apple if you are say, going to plant a tree. For example, good luck in getting a local anise reinette or court pendu plat from the local farm. This includes the increasingly popular apple tasting packages for the little party you may be having (oh, and please out there, don't use the foam inserts, ugh). Lastly, I know we made some smiles out there when we mailed out a few packages of antonovka apples to different folks who remember them from the Russian old country (one for a family pie bakeoff). These sorts of things seem pretty harmless and pumps up the quality of the culture a bit.
That said, I am sure none of us think it a good idea to get our food in this manner, and it won't be too long until until the earth says we can't afford to do such a thing anyway.
Walden Heights Nursery & Orchard
Zone 3 in Vermont
What we have found is that it is a great and affordable way to taste an apple if you are say, going to plant a tree. For example, good luck in getting a local anise reinette or court pendu plat from the local farm. This includes the increasingly popular apple tasting packages for the little party you may be having (oh, and please out there, don't use the foam inserts, ugh). Lastly, I know we made some smiles out there when we mailed out a few packages of antonovka apples to different folks who remember them from the Russian old country (one for a family pie bakeoff). These sorts of things seem pretty harmless and pumps up the quality of the culture a bit.
That said, I am sure none of us think it a good idea to get our food in this manner, and it won't be too long until until the earth says we can't afford to do such a thing anyway.
Walden Heights Nursery & Orchard
Zone 3 in Vermont
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