Central Pennsylvania fruit farms preparing for fall harvest

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (WTAJ) – In July many farms were unsure of how their crops would turn out after a drought, however, one farm says it is nearly perfect.

With fall right around the corner, many fruit farms in Central Pa. are beginning to harvest apples and pumpkins. One of those farms is the Harner Farm in State College.

“We got off to a good start in the spring, with plenty of water, and dodged some bullets with the frost and everything,” Chris Harner said. “Then July came along and It was super dry there for the whole month. That was probably our biggest worry out of the whole season so far, then rains picked back up again.”

Some farmers are dealing with an influx of crops that are weighing down and destroying trees and plants. At the Harner Farm, an early start helped keep plants and trees healthy.

“We got a lot of thinning done with the apples and peaches to lighten the load on the trees and you know everything sized up nice,” Harner said.

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Even with the drought, Harner says the crop turned out nearly perfect. Something that hardly ever happens. With fall approaching even more plants and fruits are blossoming.

“Corn, peaches, apples and everything else did really well for us. The flavor has been really good on everything and the size. And now that we’re getting the cool nights the apples are coloring up great.”

The Harner Farm is also preparing to open its annual corn maze in the middle of September which will be open during store hours.

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