Cold winter, summer hail wipe out all of Happy Apple Farm’s apple crop

CANON CITY, Colo. (KRDO) - Fall's apple picking season may come to a halt for families that traditionally go to Happy Apple farms. Owner Tony Ferrara says that last year's cold winter and a July hail storm wiped out all of their typical apple crop.

"[It's been a] brutal year for farmers over the winter. Even though the tree is dormant when it hits subzero temperatures, it will damage that bud. And so that was about  60% killed. Then what poor apples made it -- We had a hailstorm on July 20th and that finished us off," Ferrara said.

The farm has been in his family for around 40 years. While Tony said apples aren't exactly a prime crop in Colorado, it has kept the family farm alive and running for a long time.

This year, they're relying on side businesses like their in-house deli, a shop and a pumpkin patch to keep them alive. More than that, they've reduced business hours to just Friday through Saturday, when they used to run Monday through Friday.

"We have to find ways to cut corners and to save money," Ferrara said.

More than that, Ferrara says that the generations of families that have been coming have him less worried about the financial future of his business.

"Without the families that make it a tradition, we'd be in deep trouble. But we we are able to survive because of their support and I can't tell them thanks enough."