Climate change — American as apple pie?
By: Veer Mudambi
Tags: Climate Change, Autumn, Agriculture, Apple, New England

Autumn and with it, harvest season is upon us. A time when we can look forward to a fresh apple pie and gourd themed decorations on our doorsteps. You really couldn’t imagine this time of year without them — they’re as much a part of the fall season as the vibrant red, orange and golden hues that light up our trees and forests.

But what if there were no changing leaves, no crisp sunny autumn days and ultimately no fall season at all? In most of the U.S., we experience four seasons of roughly equal length however, scientists predict that climate change will affect how the seasons are arranged and the year will be dominated by only two seasons — winter and summer. Spring and autumn would be short transitional periods in April and October and the rest of the year divided between extreme hot and cold.

Agriculture will be one of the obvious casualties and fruit bearing trees are no exception. Coming out of the hottest September on record, in what is known as “seasonal creep” — when the seasons begin to bleed into each other — many orchards are bracing themselves for a sub-par crop this year.

Higher temperatures have always been problematic for agriculture overall. A warm spell too early in the Spring can trigger an early bloom, but the inevitable cold snap that follows can damage the plant and retard the ability to produce nuts, seeds and fruit later in the year. In the same way, a heat wave even during the summer can increase the risk of disease and pests, both of which are driven by temperature, rain, humidity and other environmental factors.

Sticking with the seasonal theme, let’s talk apples. New England, where I live, has long been considered an ideal location for apple growing thanks to a climate that supports a wide variety of the fruit. Unfortunately, this has begun to change over the last century with an average rise in both winter and summer temperatures. The former might not seem like such a problem, but some types of apple trees, such as Macintosh and Empire, require a minimal “chill period” every winter in order to flower and produce fruit properly.

The unpredictable weather patterns — sudden winter thaws or spring frosts — can damage the buds and stress the trees, affecting the quality of their fruit. In fact, according to a report by Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, current models show fruit-producing areas worldwide losing the ability to successfully grow tree fruit from loss of adequate winter chill days.

While other varieties of apples, such as Fuji or Granny Smith, might benefit from additional growing days brought on by a warmer climate, transitioning from one to the other will place a financial burden on the farmer who has planted entire orchards of Macintosh and Empire apples.

Even if an orchard reaches harvest time with a perfectly edible crop, it can still be deemed a failure thanks to temperamental weather. The reason? Not pretty enough.

These russet marks mean these apples won’t be seeing the inside of a supermarket.

If the temperature drops too much after the apples have begun to grow, their skin can develop rusty brown splotches called russeting, or if temperatures don’t drop enough at night, then the fruit won’t develop the signature red color. The pigment won’t fix in place, leaving it an unappetizing pinkish brown. It bears repeating that these apples are fine to eat, but their appearance means they will go towards making juice or applesauce. This severely cuts into the grower’s revenue, as the apples are sold at a far lower price than if they were sent to grocery stores.

As seasons lose their distinguishing characteristics, our markers for their arrival will do the same. Greenish gold new leaves and magnolia trees in the spring, watermelons, peaches and corn in the summer, apples, pumpkins and brilliant colors in the fall, snowmen in the winter. All these things may be a thing of the past by the year 2050.

How about them apples?