A study conducted by Michigan State University highlights the unique role that specialty crops play in the state’s economy, contributing about $6.3 billion and creating about 41,000 full-time jobs.
Many of these Michigan farms grow a diverse range of crops, from apples to asparagus to vegetables. It is the diversity that sets Michigan specialty crops apart, coupled with the state’s unique climate.
Juliette McAvoy, a second-generation grower, shares a little bit about what sets Michigan produce apart. Her family’s orchard, on the northwest coast of the state’s lower peninsula is about 3 miles inland from Lake Michigan and about 45 minutes north of Traverse City.
“We grow a lot of different stuff on our farm starting with asparagus which we’re harvesting right now strawberries, sweet cherries, tart cherries, pears, plums, apricots, nectarines, apples and a whole bunch of veggies and random stuff in between,” she says. “We really have a lot going on all the way from May to October and our focus on our farm is to bring people here. We do a lot of agritourism, where people can come pick something for almost three months or four months out of the year.”
Diversification, McAvoy says, is the key to her family’s business.
“We are very diversified and that has been intentional not only does it reduce risk but my father who started the the business over 45 years ago he learned quickly that in order to get labor that you’ve trained and you like you needed to be able to you wanted to keep them in for as long as possible,” she says. “We’ve intentionally tried to expand our growing season beyond just sweet cherries which is you know maybe three or four weeks in July.”
McAvoy says this diversification has helped drive people to visit her family’s farm markets for fresh produce, baked goods and more.
And as for what makes Michigan such a great state to grow a variety of different fresh produce offerings? The lake, of course.
“Lake Michigan plays a really big role into why this is such a good fruit growing region and because it tempers the fluctuations in temperature,” she says. “The lake keeps our winters a little milder than if you were inland more and then we our springs are a little cooler than if you’re inland more. That’s one of the reasons why we can still grow fruit this far north.”
McAvoy says the drumlins, which are the ridges left after the glaciers receded thousands of years ago helped creat sloping hill and the moderate temperatures which also helps growers.
“These sloping hills paired with the lake as a moderator of temperature really make this one of the there’s special fruit growing regions here in Michigan,” she says. “We also think it’s quite beautiful and we’re very lucky to be able to live here and work here.”
