AP PHOTOS: Cranberries bubble from bog to Thanksgiving table
Posted November 22, 2016 6:00 am
ILWACO, Wash. (AP) - Cranberry bogs in Washington state produce solid hues of vibrant red each fall as one of the state's lesser-known crops is harvested in the months before Thanksgiving.
This year's crop of about 194,000 barrels of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S., according to federal estimates. Wisconsin and Massachusetts produce the bulk of the crop.
Malcolm and Ardell McPhail have operated CranMac Farm for more than 35 years, one of the largest and oldest cranberry farms in Washington.
Their harvest of about 1,000 tons of cranberries this year is slightly down from 2015, but Malcolm says new varieties are increasing the yield-per-acre from the peat-rich soil on his farm and others.
The resulting surplus nationally has driven prices down, but McPhail says he's optimistic.
"It's nice to grow a healthy crop," he said, adding, "We hardly eat a meal that we don't have cranberries."
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, farmworker Blane Sanders guides cranberries into boxes during harvest in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, a worker holds a split cranberry during harvesting on a farm in Ilwaco, Wash. Each fall, cranberry bogs in Western Washington produce solid hues of vibrant red as one of the state's lesser-known crops. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, floating booms corral cranberries for harvesting on a farm in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, a worker uses a paddle to move cranberries floating in a bog during harvesting on a farm in Ilwaco, Wash. Each fall, cranberry bogs in Western Washington produce solid hues of vibrant red as one of the state's lesser-known crops is harvested before Thanksgiving. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, farmowner Malcolm McPhail steps out of a cranberry bog being flooded for harvest in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, a worker walks through a flooded cranberry bog during harvest in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, farmowners Malcolm McPhail, right, and his wife Ardell McPhail drive "beaters" through a flooded cranberry bog during harvesting in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, farmworker Felix Barrveta uses a paddle to move cranberries floating in a cranberry bog during harvest in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, workers fill boxes full of cranberries during harvesting at a farm in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, farmworker Blane Sanders guides cranberries into boxes during harvesting in Ilwaco, Wash. Each fall, cranberry bogs in Western Washington produce solid hues of vibrant red. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, farmworkers walk through a cranberry bog on a farm in Ilwaco, Wash. This year's estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, farmworker Juan Hernandez walks through a cranberry bog in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, workers guide cranberries to an elevator that lifts them up to boxes on a truck during harvest in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, Malcolm McPhail, left, and his wife Ardell McPhail walk through a flooded cranberry bog on their farm in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
In this Oct. 11, 2016 photo, a custom license plate bears the name of the cranberry farm owned by Malcolm and Ardell McPhail in Ilwaco, Wash. This yearâs estimated crop of about 170,000 barrels (8,500 tons) of cranberries puts the apple-giant state fifth in the U.S. behind Wisconsin and Massachusetts, the two states that produce the bulk of the crop. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
The Associated Press
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