Michigan apple harvest prediction dates for 2023

Bill Shane<shane@msu.edu>, Emily Lavely<lavelyem@msu.edu>, Derek Plotkowski<plotkow5@msu.edu>, Nikki Rothwell<rothwel3@msu.edu>, Erin Lauwers<lauwerse@msu.edu> and Lindsay Brown<brow1111@msu.edu>, Michigan State University Extension - August 09, 2023

Michigan State University apple team releases predicted harvest dates for five production areas in Michigan.

Apples hang from a tree ready for harvest. — Photo by Bill Shane, MSU Extension

Detailed predicted apple peak harvest dates for five production regions in Michigan are now available to help with planning, including application of preharvest treatments and scheduling labor. These reports give the normal and predicted harvest dates for the southwest, west central, central, southeast and northwest regions for common commercial apple varieties including McIntosh, Jonathan and Red Delicious.

The predicted harvest dates are based on mathematical models developed by Michigan State University for these varieties using full bloom date and the temperatures for the 30 days after bloom.

Also given are the predicted harvest dates for a broader list of apple varieties. These predictions are based on McIntosh, Jonathan and Red Delicious and historical experience of relative harvest order of other varieties compared to these three.

These reports are based on the Apple Maturity Model on the Enviroweather website, which can be consulted for predictions for all Michigan State University Enviroweather stations for locations not covered by these five reports.

View the reports below:

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).