A22-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 13, 1993
Mickey
BONNIE BRECHBILL
Franklin Co. Correspondent
CHAMfcERSBURG (Franklin
Co.) Dwight Mickey’s favorite
saying is, “If I knew the world
would end tomorrow, today I
would plant an apple tree.”
(Author unknown)
While Mickey doesn’t profess
to have any inside knowledge of
when the world will end, he cer
tainly has planted apple trees. And
peach trees. And pear, cherry,
apricot and plum trees.
Mickey, 33, along with his
parents, Jack and Wilma Mickey,
operates Shatzer Fruit Market and
Orchards just west of Chambers
burg. In addition to the 40 acres of
fruit trees, the Mickeys have 10
acres of sweet com and two to
three acres of pumpkins. The farm
has been in the family since 1932.
The Mickeys won 92 ribbons at
the Farm Show this year, includ
ing 23 first places. “The competi
tion was much stiffer this year,”
Dwight Mickey said. His family
has been the overall prize winner
in the fruit division for the past
four years, he said. "I don’t look at
it that I’m competing with other
growers. I compete with myself
and try to do better each year. It’s
my report card for the year.”
Mickey invested a lot of time
preparing to win all those ribbons.
He spent 10 days going through
120 bushels of apples in his cold
storage building to get 30 bushels
for his display. “I spent a whole
day just on Yellow Delicious. The
challenge is to find 88 apples all
the same to put in a bushel,” he
said. The judges look for unifor
mity and finish.
He also worked in the apple and
cider booth in the Food Court.
Stop in and see our
NEW Vermont Castings
GAS STOVE
in operation!
mac.
Problem Water?
Odor? Bad Taste? Stains? Iron? Manganese?
Mineral Buildup? Color? Bacteria? Virus?
Harmful Micro-organisms? Hydrogen Sulfide?
THM Precursors? Other Contaminants?
Do You Have Any Problems With:
* Small Litter Size m
* Too Much Medication JJ
* Milk Production J ***
* Poor Feed Efficiency I — J,
* Algae in Drinking Cups {yfi
* Bad Conception Rate «
Could Water Be Your Problem?
Complete Farm Water Treating
System
A Farm Water System that is designed to clean the water on
your farm with one of natures most powerful purifying agents
Condensed Oxygen (Ozone).
W? 335 Quarry Rd., Laola, Pa. 17540
IWKiiuUIN 717-656-8380
WATER CONDITIONING INC 9 '
Plants Apple
Proceeds from the stand are used
to fund research projects in Pen
nsylvania’s fruit industry.
A highlight of his week was
giving a presentation about apples
to the non-farm public in the Fam
ily Living Center. About 150 peo
ple attended. He spoke about sev
eral new varieties of apples, such
as Fuji, Gala and Ginger Gold,
then focused on pest management
technology such as pheromone
traps and mating disruptance. Peo
ple asked questions afterwards.
“No one was critical about spray
ing,” he noted. “The questions
were pertinent to anyone who has
a couple of (apple) trees in their
backyard.”
Mickey had a brief foray into
the world of broadcast journalism
at this year’s Farm Show. At the
request of Greencastle radio sta
tion WKSL, he gathered news of
Franklin County participants and
award winners. His report was
recorded over the phone each
evening for broadcast.
He has attended Farm Show
every year since he was 4. “It’s tir
ing, but I enjoy every minute of
it,” he said.
Uses New Technology
A 1981 graduate of Shippens
burg University with a degree in
Business Management, Mickey
makes use of the new technology
that is available to the fruit indus
try. His hydrothermograph keeps
track of temperature, leaf wetness
and humidity, allowing him to
predict disease conditions.
He also uses Integrated Crop
Management, which involves the
use of beneficial insects such as
the ladybird beetle, praying man
tis and ladybug, to help to control
harmful insects.
IGW. 906 *
Main St., (Rt. 322) Ephrata
Block Hast of Rt 222
(717) 733-4973
l-800-642-0310
D m sr* gg
Trees, Others, In Family Orchards
Mickey determines the popula
tion of harmful insects with insect
traps. Depending on the numbers
found, he may stretch his spray
interval from seven days to 10.
“With new technology, I feel
that by 2000 insecticides in the
orchard will be pretty well fin
ished and replaced with biological
controls,” he predicts. Diseases of
fruit trees, however, are a different
story, he" said. “The only way I
foresee no spray at all is through
the development of disease
resistant strains of fruit.”
New BELMONT Alfalfa Delivers
DISEASES NEMATODES AND
INSECTS
1 11l Mm S x>
fill J 9 § 9 c 9 5 s J|-g
VARIETIES |j |i |g g| || || MM g| g|- If g-|
Arrow HR R HR HR MR • • • MR R
Blazer XL R R HR HR HR R R • HR
Crown II HR R HR HR HR • LR • R MR
Dart HR R HR HR R • • • . R
Fortress R R R HR R • • • HR R • HR
BELMONT HR R HR R HR R MR MR R HR R HR
Legend HR R HR HR HR • MR • MR R • LR
Magnum 111 R MR R R MR • • • MR • • MR
Magnum 111-Wet • MR R R MR MR
Multiking 1 HR R HR R R ... MR MR • MR
Oneida VR R HR HR MR MR
Sabre • HR HR R HR • HR •
Vernal R • MR
WL 320 R MR HR R MR • • • MR MR MR . R
WL322 HQ HR R HR R MR » LR HR R HR
High Resistance (HR], Resistance [RI Moderate Resistance [MR], Low Resistance [LR].
Dot [■] indicates variety is susceptible or no resistance claimed.
BELMONT was developed to withstand the diseases, insects, and
weather that we have here in the Northeast.-But it does more than just
survive our conditions. It performs very well. In four years of testing at
Hershey, PA, BELMONT outyielded such varieties as WL32O, Legend,
Oneida VR and Edge. At Landisville, PA, BELMONT is number one,
outyielding such varieties as WL322HQ, Magnum m. Aggressor and
Majestic. When high performance ¥J¥]lT j\ TfTn
is important. When second best K|H J .|y|l IW I
won't do, ask your seed dealer
for BELMONT.
ickey with bountiful apple harvest.
Dwight
Penn State’s Extension Agent
for Fruit, William Kleiner, has
worked with Mickey on new pro
jects for about five years. He said
Mickey is open-minded and will
ing to leam about new technology.
“He’s a good cooperator. He’s
willing to try things even though
not everything is going to be
adaptable to his operation,” Klein
er said.
Strategy for Survival
Mickey hires one to four part
time employees during the busiest
seasons.
Outstanding Pest Resistance!
Dictributad by;
NORTHAMPTON COUNTY SEED CO., INC
P.O. BOX 51 BATH, PENNSYLVANIA 18014
(215) 837-6311 837-6322
“Labor is an increasing prob
lem, one that is of great concern to
me if I’m going to survive over the
next 20-30 years,” he said.
Another factor involved in the
survival of small orchards is
overhead. *-
“The price of chemicals has
doubled in the last 10 years. The
price of a tractor has quadrupled in
20 years,” Mickey said. “We’re
getting the same price for apples
as we did 15 years ago. What
laborer is getting the same at his
(Turn to Pago A 23)
Fast Growing Alfalfa
Great Plains Research Company, Inc. 800-874-7945