​Greetings Everyone!
 
Due to the sudden cold snap last week, we had to get everything picked or risk losing it to those cold temperatures. Good thing we did, the temps in the mid-teens would have ruined anything left on the trees. The good news is we got what we had picked, the bad news is there really isn’t that much....soooo this week looks to be our final week of the year at the markets. 
 
Here is what we will have: 

• Winesap, the awesome old fashioned tart variety - great for pies, fresh eating, sauce, cider….thanksgiving isn’t that far away! 
• Jonathan, one of the best all-around apples for pies, sauce, fresh eating and cider and all things around!!
• Pink Lady, the New Zealand variety that everyone loves due to their crisp texture and sweet/tart flavor which is along the line of Honeycrisp.  
• As usual, we have some odd ball assortments as we empty out our cold storage unit. 

 
Thanks for all of your support and business, hope to see you at one of the markets. 
 
Walt
Masonville Orchards

​Ohhh you tart lovers!  This is your week….we have the goods for you this week! 
 
This coming weekend will be the last of our Jonathans which are not overly tart, but loved by tarts and non-tarts alike due to their strong apple flavor and enough of a tart bite to be great for everything - pies, sauce, cider…you name it.  Will also have a little stronger….tartier, more tart, whatever you want to call it….more tart Winesap!!  Winesaps are another old fashioned variety that are loved for that tart bite and used for everything from sauce to cider to pies to just plain eating….a late season star! 
 
For those who are not as fond of all things tart, will also have some Cameos, a great bright red sweet variety and an assortment of other varieties that will vary by market….things like Criterion, Sundance, CandyCrisp….depends on what goes in which truck. 
 
Sending the newsletter out a little earlier than usual this week to accommodate those who want to pre-order ½ bushels or bushels of Jonathan or Winesap.  Let me know how much you want and which market to bring it to no later than Thursday Night.  All of our loading will happen on Friday so need those requests before I get that going Friday morning.   
 
Enjoy the rest of the fall season, it is coming to an end quickly (in CO on Thursday it looks like!!). Despite the little winter blast we are about to receive, we will be at all of our markets on Saturday & Sunday. 
 
Thanks.
Walt
Masonville Orchards
970-231-6399

Greetings Everyone,

Here is the quick round up for the week….Jonathans!!  If you want some, this is the week to get them, and likely the last week for them.  They are pretty large, dark red and have that sweet/tart thing going.  One of the all time favorites and classics - great for pies, sauce, fresh eating and cider….an all around variety.  

Every market will have something different this week, Cinnamon Spice goes to one market, Melrose to another, Honeycrisp to another….so each market will be a little different. 

All markets will have a handful of Stanley Plums, the large sweet/tart prune type variety…. they are the last plums of the season. 

Greeley…will not be there this week, Kevin/Kit can’t make it, but will be back the following week.
 
Still to come, Cameo, Winesap, Pink Lady and a handful of others.  Hope to see you at one of the markets. We have about 3 weeks left in the season so get them while you can.  Thanks for all of your business.

Walt
Masonville Orchards
​

​
Greetings to all you apple lovers-
 
Here’s what we've got going this week ….. Jonathans!! Yes, one of the more popular old time varieties…. some say they are sweet, some say they are tart, but everyone says they are good! Good for fresh eating, good for pies, good for sauce, and best of all, good for my bank account! We have quite a few Jonathan’s but they also go pretty quickly so if you want a ½ bushel or bushel, it’s best to reserve it ahead of time and we will hold it for you. But please don’t wait until the last hour to pick it up….if we run out of fruit and it is sitting there the last hour, it’s going to be sold.
 
Honeycrisp…. Honeycrisp week was last week…. now down to just a few so if you want them, get to the markets early or they will be gone, gone, gone!
 
Red Prince… same story as Honeycrisp, just have a few so they will be gone quickly….for those who got some last week, you love the large red sweet juiciness of them and we do too.
 
Will probably have some other odds and ends depending on the market but this is Jonathan week….they will be the featured variety. 
 
Hope to see you at one of the markets.

Walt
Masonville Orchards
970-231-6399

Greetings everyone, it has been a while since an update due to some medical issues. Hopefully I am getting past those and will be more regular on the updates. The brief update for this week, will have:
 

• Akane, which means “bright” in Japanese, a very floral and fragrant cross of Jonathan & Indo. Good for all uses, baking, fresh eating, sauce, cider. Prized by cider makers for its floral aroma. (See Haykin Family Cidery-Award Winning Akane Cider)

• Sansa, which is a cross of Akane & Gala, not as sweet as Gala, not as fragrant as Akane. Good for all uses.

• Gala, the sweet orange variety that is tasty and crisp.

• Honeycrisp, yes that Honeycrisp, the one everybody goes crazy over….no further explanation needed. We are just starting to pick Honeycrisp so be patient, there will be more to come.

• Italian Plums, also known as prune plums, slightly tart, great for baking, preserving and just eating.

See www.adamsapplecolorado.com for u-pick opportunities
 
I probably will not be at markets again this week, but the crew has it covered. Give us a call if you have any questions.

Walt
Masonville Orchards
970-231-6399

​Great to see everyone last week at the various Farmers’ Markets! We very much appreciate your business. As is the norm, we are a little short of supply and variety this early in the season but don’t worry, in a couple of weeks we will have plenty of volume….we get anxious to get started…and so do you, which is a GOOD thing.
 
This week will have 3 varieties:

• Ginger Gold - the large green/yellow variety that is a balance of sweet and tart, crisp and tasty, great for salads, sauce or fresh eating

 

• Williams Pride - a good sized red apple that is also a balance of sweet and tart but leans more toward the sweet side than Ginger Gold (which leans toward tart) 

 

• Sansa - an orange-red sweet variety that is a cross of Akane and Gala, great for fresh eating and sauce though they tend to be a medium to small apple. Some years they have a stronger Gala tendency, other years a stronger Akane influence.  I suppose it has to do with growing conditions of that particular year. This year my taste buds say stronger on the Gala flavor. 

 

• May have just a handful of some other stuff….such as Summer Rambo, not a tough apple as the name might suggest.

 
Mike & Will who purchased our U-pick orchard/country store (Adams Apple Orchard) are likely opening this week. Check out their website: www.adamsapplecolorado.com.  
 
Looking forward to seeing you at the markets this weekend (Greeley, Fort Collins, Longmont & Boulder). We will also be at the Loveland market this Sunday.
 
See our website www.masonvilleorchard.com for days/hours of the various markets. 
 
Walt
Masonville Orchards
970-231-6399

Yippy, yahooo…. it is opening weekend for us at the Farmer’s Market…we are as excited as a young child on their 1st day of school.  Just like a little kid, we may not have our act completely together but it doesn’t matter, we are just happy to get the season started.
 
Just like early in the season in previous years, the 1st week or two tends to lean more toward tart varieties rather than sweet…those with a sweet tooth like me have to wait a bit... but what we have will be excellent!!!

Will have 3 varieties:

• Ginger Gold, the sweetest of the trio, but not that sweet, more a balance of sweet and tart, crisp and tasty, great for salads, sauce or fresh eating
•   Dandee Red, the tartest of the varieties…not overly tart like Granny Smith, but tart….very similar to McIntosh, some call them Early McIntosh, great for fresh eating and baking pies (hint, hint,…did I mention I like pie!)
• Last but certainly not least is Pristine. Personally I love Pristine, they have a very unique lemon-citrus flavor that is just unusual for an apple. Don’t have very many of those so get there early if they are your thing! 

    May have just a handful of some other stuff….Enigma and 1 other that I can’t remember at the moment!

 
Mike & Will, who purchased our U-pick orchard/country store, are likely opening next week. Be sure to check out their website: www.adamsapplecolorado.com.  
 
Looking forward to seeing you at the markets this weekend (Greeley, Fort Collins, Longmont & Boulder), We will be at the Loveland market (Sundays) starting Aug 25. See our website www.masonvilleorchard.com for days/hours of the various markets. 
 
Walt
Masonville Orchards
970-231-6399

​Greetings everyone! The time for apples is near, we have started to pick a few, more next week and will probably start limited markets the weekend of Aug 17 provided I can find some sales/farmers’ market assistants. If you know anyone who wants to work markets (i.e. Saturday mornings), we are in need of 4-5 folks for Boulder, Longmont, and Fort Collins. The Greeley market is set with Kevin and Kit returning for the umpteenth time (which is a good thing). They have been at the Greeley market as long as we have been there. Jerrika is returning to tackle Boulder but needs a helper. Josh graduated and will not be in Fort Collins anymore (what in the world could be more important, an engineering career or tormenting me at the market? He chose career….go figure!).  Our entire crew from Longmont is gone….sooo, if you know of anyone who would be a good fit (early morning Saturday type from mid-August to late October), have them contact me asap, either by phone 970-231-6399 or email waltrosenberg@yahoo.com.
 
 
So early in the markets we will have limited varieties, but the 1st ones will be Ginger Gold, a sweet/tangy variety that looks like yellow delicious but taste nothing like it. Dandee Red is on the tart side, for those of you who like McIntosh, these are the ticket….they are considered an improved McIntosh, meaning a little sweeter and not as soft….and large! We will also have some Pristines, one of my early season favorites. For those who remember, they have a lemon-citrus type flavor.
 
Will send out a note next week confirming our markets but if you are interested in working a market or know someone who would be…..have them contact me! Thanks and looking forward to seeing you soon. 
 
Walt
Masonville Orchards
970-231-6399

This summer update is a big one for Masonville Orchards, besides getting ready for another fruit season, we have some significant changes heading our way. 

We are happy to announce that Mike Biwar has purchased our U pick operation and country store. Due to some family health issues (both me and Paula) I finally figured out I had to slow down a bit…the most common sense thing to do was to sell the Ault U pick and country store location, since it can be operated as a standalone business versus the other orchard locations that are more integrated into other things I am doing. That being said, welcome Mike to Northern Colorado (he comes here from Wisconsin), he plans to operate the location as a U pick orchard and will expand the days of operation, the products in the store, etc., all the things I just didn’t have the bandwidth to do. The new name of the operation is Adams Apple Orchards, see the attached link to go to his website www.adamsapplecolorado.com , contact info, etc.

We (Masonville Orchards) will still be at the various farmers’ markets we have always been at (Fort Collins, Greeley, Longmont, Boulder , Loveland), just won’t have the U pick option any longer. With the Ault location sold, it means I personally will be at more Farmers’ Markets (don’t know if that is a good thing or not!).  So other than fighting the weather, which is a continuous battle, all other things are good….the weather as usual has been challenge with a really cold, dry winter, followed by a cold spring, then a wet May/June….which makes growing fruit a challenge….but, that is why we do it….if everyone could, they would!!  That is all of the news for the day, will see you at the markets in August.

Walt
Masonville Orchards