Green Thumb Gazette, November 2025

Brushy Mountain Apples Return to the NC State Fair After 30 Years
By Cari Rosenbalm

For more than 30 years, the apple industry has been proudly represented at the North Carolina State Fair. However, that representation has long come solely from Henderson County growers, thanks to a dedicated group of volunteers led by retired Henderson County Extension Director, Marvin Owings..

That changed this year.

This spring, I was approached by NCDA Apple Marketing Specialist Michelle Roberts about bringing Brushy Mountain apples to the State Fair for the first time in over three decades. We both agreed it was time to showcase a fuller picture of North Carolina’s apple industry—one that includes the Brushy Mountains, a region steeped in apple-growing tradition.

So, we did just that!

For this first year, I gathered apples from Deal Orchards in Taylorsville as a "test run." Many of our local orchards faced tough growing conditions this season, including significant hail damage, so I didn’t want to pressure anyone to send entries. Instead, my goal was to learn the process, build connections, and prepare to take a larger group of Brushy Mountain entries next year.

After loading up the apples, I made the drive to the heart of Raleigh and arrived at the NC State Fairgrounds—ready to work alongside the seasoned volunteer crew from Henderson County. Together, we unpacked, sorted, polished, and displayed apples from across the state.

In total, we went through about 90 bushel boxes to fill all the categories available to apple growers. Each apple is handled three or more times during the process. First, we carefully pick the best of the best—apples that are uniform in size, color, and shape, all pointing in the same direction and as blemish-free as possible. If there are any small blemishes, we simply make sure the prettiest side is facing up.

Once the perfect apples are chosen, they are polished—by hand—with white cotton gloves. (I can now confidently add "dang-good apple polisher" to my résumé!) After polishing, the apples are arranged in trays, boxes, or plates for judging and display.

When the judging results were finalized, I was thrilled to see that Deal Orchards placed 4th overall in the Apple Growers Sweepstakes! They brought home an impressive three first-place ribbons, one second-place ribbon, and three fourth-place ribbons across several categories:

Deal Orchards Results – 2025 NC State Fair
Apple Growers Sweepstakes (Overall) – 4th place
Commercial Apple Display – 4th place
Best Single Apple Box – 4th place
Single Tray Gala – 2nd place
Single Tray Any Other Named Red Variety – 1st place
Single Plate Any Other Named Red Variety – 1st place
Orchard Apples, Any Red Apple Variety (Tray or 5) – 1st place

It was truly an honor to represent the Brushy Mountain apple region and work alongside Michelle, Marvin, and the rest of the Henderson County team.

As a bonus, I also had the chance to witness the Great Pumpkin Commonwealth Weigh-Offs—a highlight of the fair each year. The largest watermelon tipped the scales at 288.6 pounds, grown by Chris Kent of Sevierville, Tennessee, while the largest pumpkin weighed an astounding 2,244.5 pounds, grown by Albert Rodebaugh of Craigsville, West Virginia.

Planting Spring Bulbs & Potted Bulb Lasagna!

The Alexander County Master Gardeners met this month to learn how to plant bulbs lasagna style!! This is a very simple task you can do to get that early spring color of bulbs without having to dig in the yard or remember where plants already are in the landscape that are dying back. Use the Bulb chart above and these steps below to create a potted bulb planter that will look good all winter until those bulbs start showing!

Step 1 - Find a pot with good drainage that will either stand the cold (insulated) or find a pot that you can plant in that you can slip down into an empty insulated pot you might already have. Flimsy pots will struggle in the winter and could potentially kill bulbs in late winter/early spring if we have a warm spell followed by another cool spell.

Step 2 - Fill bottom with a few inches of regular potting soil or planting mix that is well draining. Look for a mix that has a good amount of bark, larger pieces, or perlite because that will help with drainage as well.

Step 3 - Start with your largest bulbs at the bottom of your pot (pointy side up!). Make layers following with a layer of soil and the next largest bulbs until you reach the top few inches of your pot.

Step 4 - After adding your smallest bulbs and a light layer of soil near the top of your pot, add plants that don't mind the cold to give you some late fall/winter color. This includes pansies, dusty miller, snapdragons, ornamental kales and cabbages, or even pretty twigs and evergreen trimmings!

Step 5 - Water everything in well and place your (insulated) pot on the porch, in the driveway or wherever you’d like!

Notes
*If you do not have a good insulated pot, just make sure to bring your pot in the garage or outbuilding when we have freeze events. Just remember to bring them in when temperatures get back above freezing.

*Be sure to look at what type of bulbs you are adding in: what color they are, time before they start to emerge, & scents.

*Bulbs will need a little space from each other on the same level so don’t pack them too tightly.

And viola! You have made a beautiful lasagna bulb planter that will bring you pretty colors and joy for the winter and spring season.

The Ag Ventures Grant is accepting applications NOW!

NC AgVentures, a NC State Extension program provides grants to NC farmers and non-profit community groups that work with family farms, for agricultural project ideas that will increase farm profits. The program, which is sponsored by the NC Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, will award a minimum of 50 grants to independent family farms. This is a great opportunity for any producer who is thinking of diversifying, improving, or expanding their farm operation.This is a competitive grant program.

Applications will be accepted from family farms in the following counties: Alamance, Alexander, Alleghany, Anson, Ashe, Cabarrus, Caswell, Catawba, Chatham, Davidson, Davie, Durham, Edgecombe, Franklin, Forsyth,, Gaston, Granville, Greene, Guilford, Halifax, Harnett, Iredell, Johnston, Lincoln, Martin, Mecklenburg, Nash, Northampton, Orange, Person, Pitt, Randolph, Rockingham, Rowan, Sampson, Stanly, Stokes, Surry, Union, Vance, Wake, Wayne, Wilson, Wilkes, Warren, and Yadkin.

NC AgVentures will award grants up to $10,000.
Application submission begins October 15th, 2025
Deadline to apply is 6 PM December 19th, 2025.

More Information on the AgVentures Grant** If you are interested in applying for an AgVentures Grant, please contact Cari Rosenbalm at 828-632-4451 or cari_rosenbalm@ncsu.edu.