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From Orchard to You

	Pruning Pruning gets the trees ready for the next fruit growing season. Wood is removed to manage the tree's crop load and ensure leaves and fruit get lots of light.

	Blossom Apple trees bloom in the spring. The flowers are pollinated and grow into apples. Good weather during blossom time is important for a quality crop.

	Frost Watch Growers sometimes have to protect their orchards from cold spring weather. Huge fans mounted on towers are used to create an inversion, raising the orchard's temperature. If it gets too cold, flowers, fruit buds and trees can die.

	Thinning When the apples grow to the size of a golf ball, orchard workers thin them by hand. Small, misshapen fruit is removed and the best apples are left to mature.

	Harvest All Washington apples are picked by hand. Fruit is carefully placed in bags slung on workers' shoulders. The bags are gently dumped into large wooden and plastic bins.

	Warehouse Bins full of apples are hauled to a warehouse where they're placed in storage. Horticulturists carefully monitor the refrigerated rooms to make sure the apples stay cold and crunchy.

	Packing Apples are sorted for color, size and quality before they're shipped to grocery stores. They're carefully packed in boxes and placed on pallets.

	Shipping Packed Washington apples are sold to grocery stores, fruit markets and restaurants around the world. They travel in refrigerated trucks, railcars and ships.

	To your store Most people buy their Washington apples in grocery stores. Your supermarket may stock as many as nine varieties grown in Washington state.

	To your home Keep apples in your refrigerator at home. They'll stay crisp, and you'll have a tasty nutritious snack when you need one.