Minnesota's Apple Crop Is Looking Good

WINONA, Minn. (AP) -- Minnesota's apple crop is looking good.

Mike Dekarski, president of the Minnesota Apple Growers Association, tells the Winona Daily News the state's apple harvest is expected to be 10 percent bigger than last year's, partly because it's faced less severe weather. The Department of Agriculture says a cool spring meant a slow start for some orchards, but trees benefited from plenty of rain and sun.

At Southwind Orchards near the southeastern Minnesota town of Dakota, co-manager Lanakay Curtis expects crops around average. He says the Honeycrisp trees may produce a little more and the McIntosh a bit less because of some heavy rain spurts.

Ralph Yates, manager and co-owner of Fruit Acres near La Crescent, says there's potential for a good year if there's no bad weather before harvest.

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