From The Road: IFTA Conference Day 5

By Christina Herrick|February 26, 2015

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Young growers present at IFTA posed for a photo at the Old Orchard Inn with former IFTA present Steve Blizzard following his Carlson Lecture. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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Waldo Walsh introduces his family during a tour stop at Birchleigh Farms. This tour stop was conducted in the Walshes hay barn due to heavy snowfall. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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To say the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia got a lot of snow is an understatement as Win Cowgill demonstrates at Birchleigh Farm. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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While at Birchleigh Farms, a small snowball fight erupted involving Nathan Milburn, Tim Welsh, and Larry Lutz. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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Local community snow plows helped clear the entire tour route for buses. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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Mario Miranda Sazo snaps a quick picture while at the Morristown Community Center. Because of heavy snow, growers listened to a presentation on Crisp Growers Inc., from inside the center while enjoying a slice of pie. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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The crowd gathers around Lisa Jenereaux and Larry Lutz at the Spur Brothers Farms' pear block. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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IFTA president Tim Welsh uses a snow pile as a platform to take a panoramic photo of the crowd assembled at Spur Brothers Farms. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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Lisa Jenereaux, a fifth-generation tree fruit grower, introduces the IFTA tour to her family's farm and the block of pears on V-trellis the group would be seeing. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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The first block of pears planted on V-trellis at Spur Brothers Farm was in 2012. These Harrow Sweet pears are on OHxF97. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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Leo Dominguez of Cornell discusses the need to encourage growth in these pears so that they reach the top of the trellis. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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Sam DiMaria asks about the slow growth of some Bosc pears on V-trellis while at Spur Brothers Farms. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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Nathan Milburn is ready to eat his lobster. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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At the end of Wednesday's tours, we were treated to a traditional lobster dinner. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)
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Naturally, when served a whole lobster, some couldn't help but play with their food, like Karen Lewis and Nathan Milburn. (Photo credit: Christina Herrick)

Growers are accustomed to coping with whatever hand Mother Nature deals you. Wednesday was no different than another day out in the orchard. While in morning sessions, she decided to hand the IFTA tour goers a picturesque snow storm. The Annapolis Valley looked like one giant Christmas card.

Snow is no stranger to IFTA bus tours, and one of my bus mates on Wednesday began to sing “It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like An IFTA Bus Tour,” to the tune of “It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas.” It was very appropriate. There was a lot of moisture in the snowfall, which made perfect packing snow. Naturally, snowball fights erupted.

But, the local tour hosts rebounded and opened barns and community centers to keep us out of the cold. We did manage to get out in one orchard and saw some V trellised pears.

IFTA’s Past, Present, And Future
The morning sessions were held at the Old Orchard Inn in Wolfville, and focused on the fire blight epidemic in 2014 in Nova Scotia. Steve Blizzard gave the Carlson Lecture and highlighted IFTA’s past. Growers reminisced during a slideshow of photos from the early years of the association. Following Blizzard’s presentation, outgoing IFTA president Phil Schwallier pulled all the young growers together for a photo. There were approximately 40 growers under the age of 30 pictured. Many of these young orchardists received scholarships from IFTA and sponsors (including American/Western Fruit Grower). So, I’d say the future looks very bright for the organization.