Q:

When you have time, tell me about the land itself (acres in apples, in maple and in wood, any pasture?) I'd like some details about the orchard (age, type of produce, new trees, etc.)

Do you offer U-pick? If so, what would be the approx. total clientèle and gross sales?

Do you have to use outside labor?

Did you harvest any of the wood in the past years?

You probably are part of the Circuit du Paysan?

Also, are you looking to sell for the total amount at once? Or maybe a gradual transfer would be possible with La Financière Agricole?

The apple trees planted were all standard type? Which variets are left? I guess the production is in decline after 20+ years?

What would be the approximate percentage of the production in U-pick, to the wholesale packers and juice? (This will help me figure out my numbers).

For the maple trees, do you have the equipment to evaporate and produce syrup? Can you supply or produce the full potential of it, 5,000 pounds ?

It's interesting to know that your buidings could accomodate livestock without major modifications, that's a plus! I don't know about sheep... is there really a good market or local demand for that ?

For the improvements, is there anything that would need attention in the next few years; house, fields, barns...

The available field to grow new apple trees, is it ready to plant or does it need other interventions before replanting ?

For the wood cutting, what would be the annual revenue out of it if it's done intelligently?

Is the rest of the land all in wood, or are there any open natural fields in it?

A:

From our experience, your are wise to speak with MAPAQ fruit agronome Paul-Emile Yelle before becoming an apple grower. We had many friends and neighbours who are apple growers teach us during the first season and Paul-Emile came the following winter to give us advice on orchard management.

Our orchards had 6,000 semi-dwarf trees planted around 1984 and 1985. He told us that he would recommend nothing else for our property but fruit growing because the loamy soil is ideal for fertility and drainage and the slope ideal for sun exposure, moisture and frost drainage.

Our first year sans experience we grossed $20,000 selling to Enderle and Leahy warehouses and direct to roadside vegetable stands in Ste-Martine, Ste-Isidore, etc. Costs included 2 teams of apple pickers, chemical sprays, diesel fuel, many tractor repairs and modifications and we hired help for mowing and spraying.....we broke even financially.

Unfortunately we did not want that many apple trees so over 3 years, we cut the orchards down to about 1,500 trees which is now manageable for us without hired pruners and pickers. There is now the potential to replant with the new dwarf varieties. There is an irrigation pond as well as irrigation pumps and filters and switches.

Maple is the best source of revenue on our farm and we invested in a complete new tubing system 2 years ago. We have the contingent / quota for over 5,000 pounds and a direct sales market for over $3,000 worth of 500 ml cans each year.

For apples I found that our best revenue came from U-pick visitors (apple picking, haywagon rides, apple juice pressing and tasting, picnic area......) but we did not pursue that too seriously such as joining Tourisme Suroit and the Circuit du Paysan. Ice cider production has become a good “value added” profit method but it requires permits.

Sheep and goats will be ideal here. I envisioned using our "4th" barn which has open doors leading into a pasture. I am in the process of connecting that pasture across a ditch to the old orchard so that animals could roam freely and find shelter whenever they needed it. Of course fencing is not yet installed but there are ditches along the road.

As you can see our professions took over our time and farming became secondary after 4 apple and maple seasons. Much of our effort went into to renovations like bringing the fields back from brush, cutting tree damage from the 1998 ice storm, removing junk from the barns, installing septic and landscaping a lawn around the house, roofing the barn, creating roads and trails in the bush, and improving the house, finishing floors and staircase, porch, etc.

I do not know by heart the number of acres...I'll have to look that up.....but I would estimate the orchard and fields around house and barns to be 30 acres, of course the actual land covered by apples is only about 7 now. The sugar bush has about 2,800 taps and covers the rest of the property mixed with large hemlock groves and several sectors of birch and aspen. A professional forester did a plan for us and you can receive subventions for proceeding with managed cutting, however, we only used the bush for firewood.

Our remaining apple trees are semi-dwarf. Cortland, Spartan, Vista Bella (1 row July), McIntosh, Empire, Paula Red (2 rows, August), and McIntosh.

Although the trees are over 20 years old, I don't believe the production is in decline. The fruit has been very abundant for the past 5 harvest seasons. Of course the size of fruit depends on pruning, thinning, pollination, spraying and fertilizing....and weather....hail and frost and drought.....the age of the trees is the least important factor.

To replant the old orchards, the fields are ready. No stumps remain in most of the fields, only a few stones are in the rows. In one orchard there are still branches of the old trees and some stumps. Those branches will provide excellent firewood. There are hundreds of cedar pickets available for replanting on wire.

Wood cutting could be very profitable. We had a professional forester prepare a plan for cutting timber not only for profit but to improve the forest production and keep watershed cover and habitat for wildlife. There is a large hemlock forest for lumber. There are 2 large sectors of birch and aspen for easy firewood and government subventions up to about $500 per hectare if you conduct the proper cutting practices.

Our old evaporator for maple syrup would require cleaning and probably new stainless steel pans. The chimney stacks are included.

When you speak of creative options for financing the farm purchase I have investigated some. It is possible to purchase only the house, after the land is separated from it in the deed with special permission by the CPTAQ agricultural land zoning board.

Also, I met with the Ministry of Environment in Quebec City and the Nature Conservancy in Montreal who are interested in either purchasing the forest for preservation as a wild forest, or placing a conservation easement "servitude" that restricts certain damaging uses of the land while still allowing harmless actions such as maple sugaring and firewood and hunting, etc. For instance if they would pay $100,000 for the forest and you purchase the house and barns and fields and orchards for $329,000, and they allow you to act as the steward of the forest and make maple syrup......you would still have the revenue without the expense of the land purchase and municipal taxes.