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A SURVEY OF THE COST OF GROWING AND HARVESTING 

 APPLES IN EASTERN NEW YORK IN 1983 



William D. Gerling^ 



Regional Extension Specialist 



Hudson Valley Lab, Highland, New York 



This is a survey and analysis of the cost of growing and harvesting apples for eight 

 operations in Eastern New York, It includes operations from throughout the Hudson 

 and Champlain Valley apple producing region. The objective of this study is to assist 

 growers in identifying and analyzing that portion of their total expenditures which 

 can be associated with the growing and harvesting portion of their business. The data 

 contained within the study is thought to be representative of what better-than average 

 growers are doing. 



Method of Obtaining Data 



Throughout the 1983 growing season, the growers in the survey were asked to keep 

 a record of where labor was used. In early 1984 the eight operations were mailed survey 

 forms to collect the labor information and other needed information. A short time 

 later, each operation was visited to pick up the forms and collect any additional 

 information that was required. 



The operations included ranged in size from 41 acres of apples to 585 acres. The 

 fruit produced by these growers account for approximately 8% of the apples produced 

 in Eastern New York. 



The sample of operations that is included in this study is neither a stratified nor 

 random sample. The purpose of this study is to provide growers with a management 

 tool with which to analyze their business. While the data contained in this report is 

 useful in evaluating a growers operation from a management standpoint, it may not 

 be representative of average costs in Eastern New York for other purposes. 



Orchards Included in the Survey 



For this study, acreage of bearing trees include all mature trees, even though they 

 may not have produced a crop or the crop may have have been harvested. It also includes 

 all young trees that produced enough fruit to make harvesting economically feasible, 

 even though the volume of apples might not have been sufficient to cover the cost 

 of growing the fruit. Using this method of determining a bearing acre can have a major 

 impact on a growers average yield, since the number of bushels of apples harvested 

 are divided by the total number of acres considered to be bearing. If a grower has 



^Reprinted with the permission of the author. 



