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MEMBER PROFILE 



A More Visible Future 



The First Impression of Apple 

 Ridge in Boscawen is the series of 

 horizontals, each slightly higher 

 than the other, rising behind the 

 house — a line of greenhouses, then 

 a hillside of apple trees, then a 

 hillside of woods beyond that. 

 And beyond the woods, a clear 

 view of Mount Kearsarge. 



Dave and Tina Larochelle moved 

 here in 1977. "We had an farm in 

 Deering," Tina says; "it was small — 

 twenty acres, only five of it or- 

 chard. We both had full-time jobs 

 and wanted to find a place big 

 enough so that we could just farm." 



At Apple Ridge, Dave and Tina 

 and their son Mike have nearly 60 

 acres, 12-15 of them in orchard, 

 most of the rest in woods. 



There were orchards on the land 

 long before the Larochelles bought 

 it, but when they first came, what's 

 now the big field of apple trees 

 behind the house was three small 

 fields of corn. In 1980, they re- 

 moved the stone walls and planted 

 3000 semi-dwarf interstems — Macs, 

 Macouns, Cortlands, Red Deli- 

 cious. ..rows twenty feet apart of 

 trees ten feet apart. 



in 1982, they opened a small 

 (26x30) farm stand and offered cus- 

 tomers a chance to pick-their-own 

 as well. 



Stand size increased (it's now 

 40x34) as the Larochelles added 

 other products — jams and jellies, 

 pickles and pies. They built a 

 10x10 kitchen in which to make 

 doughnuts to serve with cider to 



pick-your-own customers. But the 

 doughnut-making machine simply 

 made too many — there was too 

 much left over. Now the kitchen is 

 used for making caramel apples. 



Decorator pots and picnic bas- 

 kets, Indian corn, dried flowers and 

 statuary — these are some of the 

 products sold. 



Cooler size increased as produc- 

 tion grew. The first cooler was an 

 8x10 bought from a farmer in 

 Rumney; the second was a 10x20 

 wooden cooler out of the old First 

 National in Concord. The third — 

 the one they're using now — is a 

 16x30x14 walk-in designed by A 

 and B Lumber in Concord. Dave 

 describes it as "your basic cooler 

 with insulation — something most 

 farmers can build themselves." It 

 can hold 3000 bushels and allows 

 Apple Ridge to sell apples until 

 Christmas. 



After they built the cooler, they 

 enclosed the space between it and 

 the stand and created an area in 

 which to press cider. The press is 

 a 22-inch rack-and-cloth Palmer- 

 type. Cider is pressed when 

 needed; about 1000 gallons is 

 made each season. 



But in spite of all this, apples 

 are seasonal — income is only for a 

 couple months of the year. The 

 Larochelles had set up a 14x32 Cri- 

 terion near the stand and bought 

 in bedding plants. These had sold 

 well and they began growing their 

 own. In 1982, they replaced the 

 Criterion with a 25x45 Ovaltech, 



which they built onto the side of 

 the stand. 



Delicious weren't selling ("they 

 didn't look like Washington State") 

 and some of the 800 Delicious 

 trees were pulled out. Bedding 

 plant and vegetable sales were 

 continuing to expand, so no new 

 apple trees were planted and pe- 

 rennials and herbs were added to 

 the products available. 



In 1987-88, they set up three 

 hoop houses (two 14x48, one 28x48, 

 from Ed Person in Moultonboro) at 

 the base of the orchard just behind 

 the house. In 1992, the LaRo- 

 chelles expanded again, putting up 

 30x100 Ovaltech further up the hill. 



One feature of this new house is 

 the overhead door at the far end. 

 Rather than sliding open and re- 

 maining flat, shading plants, the 

 door rolls onto a drum, letting in 

 light. 



The Season Begins around the 

 first of February — the new house is 

 the first to open. Dave and Mike 

 feel plants grow better in the big- 

 ger space and increased air circula- 

 tion in the larger house. Geraniums 

 (3000 zonals for 4 l/2s; ivies for 

 hangers) arrive first. The Laro- 

 chelles are cutting back on unusual 

 hangers this year and are concen- 

 trating on the more traditional 

 ivies. 



They grow from plugs and 

 rooted cuttings — "we can start later 

 and save on heat." Plants are 

 grown on the floor (covered with 

 994 Ground Cover — a polypropy- 

 lene fabric); the crop is hand-wa- 

 tered from the center aisle and 

 side aisles and fed with a Dosmatic 

 proportioner. 



Once that house fills, plants are 

 brought down to the hoop houses 

 nearer the stand. One is kept cool 

 and filled with pansies. 



All houses are heated with LP 

 gas — service is a major factor: "my 

 neighbor is in the business — he's 

 here if I need him." 



18 



The Plantsman 



