Governor Maggie Hassan kicked off this year’s apple picking season with the ceremonial first pick Thursday at Gould Hill Farm in Contoocook.
This year’s apple crop is not expected to be quite as fruitful as last year’s.
Governor Hassan plucked a few ripe apples and encouraged families to get out to their local farms and pick some of their own.
“There are in fact great apples here in New Hampshire. We got through the winter. We’ve got a crop and we’re really really eager to have a great apple season.
Like most New England farms, Gould Hill saw a very heavy apple crop last year, followed by a particularly harsh winter.
Tim Bassett, who owns Gould Hill with his wife, expects this year to be lighter, but says there will still be plenty of apples to go around.
“Weather is a huge, huge factor for us. This summer just being a little colder than normal, the fruit’s running a little bit later, maybe a few days later than it typically is. In a whole, it’s a very good apple year.”
Pick your own opened at the farm last weekend and runs through October.