Friday, April 8, 2022
CapitalPress.com
7
Erovick family: Two orchards are better than one
By HEATHER SMITH THOMAS
For the Capital Press
COLBERT, Wash. —
This U-pick orchard at
Green Bluff has been a pop-
ular place for many years —
with customers coming back
time and again to pick their
favorite fruit.
Brad Erovick bought
the Cherryshack orchard
in 2006. At that time it was
10 acres, growing cher-
ries, apples, pears, peaches,
apricots and plums. There
was already a large cus-
tomer base of folks who
came every summer to pick
their own fruit so it was easy
to transition into the new
ownership.
“We get customers from
all over, including folks
from Idaho and Montana
because they have colder
weather and can’t grow fruit
like we can,” he said, adding
that the orchard has been a
popular summer destination
for a long time.
It’s also been a family
operation.
“My son and daughter
grew up here, helping with
everything. Wyatt is now
in college at Eastern Wash-
ington University study-
ing business, and Natalie
is a senior in high school.
My wife, Jackie, is a den-
Brad Erovick and his wife, Jackie.
tal hygienist at the Veter-
ans Administration but helps
here when she can,” Brad
said.
“We bought Smith’s Hill-
top Orchard — 4 more acres
— six years ago. It isn’t
adjacent, but nearby. That
one has mostly cherries and
peaches, and a few apples
and also U-pick,” Brad
said. “Darrell Smith owned
it originally; he started it in
the early 1970s. We left the
name the same. It also has a
strawberry fi eld.”
The Green Bluff area is
known for excellent fruit,
with several U-pick farms
dotting the countryside.
“We are zoned for this.
Orchards at Green Bluff
have been providing fruit for
the Northwest for more than
100 years.
“At fi rst there were many
apple orchards and Treetop
had a packing house nearby.
One year their roof caved in
from the snow and the com-
pany didn’t stay. It didn’t
work for orchards to ship
apples all the way to a pack-
ing house in Wenatchee or
farther,” Brad said.
Some switched crops.
“The remaining orchards
transitioned to U-pick. The
other farms are now grow-
ing hay instead of trees,” he
said. “It’s all dryland farm-
ing; we depend on rain. We
have good soil that holds
moisture.”
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Climate is ideal and win-
ters aren’t too cold.
“In my 15 years here
we haven’t had a hard win-
ter, and I haven’t heard any
old-timers talk about bad
winters,” he said. “Some of
the low areas sometimes get
a little cold, but where we
are, winters haven’t been
hard on trees.”
Spring comes early, how-
ever, and apricots are fi rst to
bloom.
“Sometimes we lose those
if there’s a late frost. The dif-
ferent fruits bloom at diff er-
ent times,” Brad said.
Between the bees in the
area, wild bees and those he
brings in, there are plenty for
pollination.
During picking season his
kids generally run the little
store and enjoy meeting the
customers.
“We get to know them and
see people grow up. They
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With his kids going to col-
lege, he is losing his help.
Natalie plans to go to North
Dakota State University and
study agronomy.
They help during sum-
mers, however.
“We don’t hire much help;
it’s mainly just family, and all
hand labor. People are sur-
prised to know that even with
1,000 trees I personally know
them all,” he said.
Brad has nurtured, pruned
and thinned each one, sam-
pled the fruit and knows each
tree.
“My dad used to help but
he passed away a couple
years ago. We have friends
who help when we need
it. My mom still helps and
makes all the jams and syr-
ups we sell in our commer-
cial kitchen. We also make
cider to sell.”
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came in baby strollers or as
toddlers with their families
and then we see them grad-
uate and get married,” Brad
said.
People look forward to
getting out in the country in
summer, especially since the
pandemic.
“It mentally helps people
to get outdoors and do things
like this, picking their own
fruit and doing the canning
they love to do,” he said.
The orchard is small
enough to have a personal
touch, yet has a large selec-
tion for their customers.
“It’s much better fruit than
you fi nd at a grocery store.
It’s sweeter and tastes bet-
ter. Peach season is big, with
people wanting fresh peaches
for eating and canning. Our
biggest season is fall with
pumpkins as well as fruit,
especially apples. Weekends
are a zoo.”
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