Apple Project
"Cultivating Growth, Harvesting Opportunities: Patriot Guardens Apple Project - Empowering Heroes in Orchard Innovation"
What is it?
Embarked upon in 2016 through collaboration with the USDA Agricultural Research Service, the Patriot Apple Project stands as a beacon of economic revitalization for rural West Virginia. Its mission? To not only revive apple orchards but also to foster diverse, high-value agricultural ventures.
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Today, this initiative is sowing the seeds of opportunity across the state, particularly in its southern regions, harnessing vast reclaimed mine sites and the collective wisdom of federal and state researchers.
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But the project’s impact extends beyond apples. A dedicated honeybee program aids in pollination, with more than 150 active hives on-site yielding both vital pollination support and marketable honey.
Highlights
To date, the PG Apple Project has planted 26,000 trees in orchard spacing, and transplanted more than 3,000 grafted trees for sale to veterans and military individuals planning small orchards. In 2023, 1,020 pounds of honey was collected from 80 hives that support the Apple Project orchard, which generated $6,120 in program revenue. Today there are over 130 hives on site.