Belliveau Orchard remains true to heritage

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Apparently Benjamin Franklin knew what he was talking about in the 1700s, as nutritionists now say one apple can provide 15 per cent of the recommended daily amount of Vitamin C. Jeannine Mabey's second career as an educational tour guide at Belliveau Orchards is a perfect fit for the retired teacher/school administrator and self-described "outdoor girl." She adapts the tour to fit age level and interests. Visitors have included school classes, day-cares, seniors groups and Chinese business people wanting to learn more about orchard management.

Fresh apples can be found year round, thanks to the controlled air storage system at Belliveau, where the temperature is maintained at 3C and oxygen is removed, so that the air mix is only 2.5 per cent oxygen to which nitrogen is added. Belliveau supplies the large grocery chains, including Sobeys, and the hospitals, with fruit, but it can also be purchased in their boutique.



But long before Franklin's time, squashed apple pulp was applied to wounds in order to accelerate healing, while Italian women mixed it with animal fat and found it worked wonders for their complexions.

These are just a few of the intriguing facts one can learn about apples at Verger Belliveau Orchard, a family owned and operated fruit orchard, in the picturesque Memramcook Valley.

Jeannine Mabey explains its origins:

"S bastien Bourgeois had worked in the U.S. and saved some money," she says. "Returning to his home in Pr -d'en-Haut in 1932, in the midst of the Depression, he recognized the soil there was full of the right nutrients for apples and that an orchard would provide employment for local people. So, with 100 apple trees of the older varieties, mostly McIntosh and Cortlands, Verger Beaus jour was begun."

After his death, it became the property of the Congregation of the Holy Cross in 1956, who renamed it les Vergers Belliveau, since it's near Belliveau Village.

Eleven years later the orchard was acquired by Louis Bourgeois. It's now managed by his son, Robert, who has turned the "little orchard that could" into a highly successful commercial enterprise. It combines the most modern techniques in pomiculture and wine-making, while remaining true to its history and heritage.

As a result, an invitation was extended to Bourgeois from the Atlantic

"We have expanded to approximately 20,000 trees, with 6,000 planted in the last two years. Since the life span of an apple tree is 50 to 60 years, none of the original trees remain. As a section of the orchard is cleared, we plant corn, pumpkins and squash to restore nutrients to the soil, before replanting apple trees which may take up to six years to be market ready."

Not only has the orchard grown in size, it has increased its number of varieties to 24, including newer, popular ones such as Honey Crisps, Ambrosia and Ginger Gold as well as Gravensteins, preferred for pies, and Spartans, Mabey's favourite.

"We've also diversified," she says, referring to pears, plums and cherries and the start of a vineyard for grape wine production.

As a result of the integrated pest management program put it place by Bourgeois and agrologist Natalie Belliveau, the trees and fruit are all healthy.

"There are pests in any orchard, but we have environmentally friendly ways of taking care of them," Bourgeois says. "Mice, for example, will gnaw the bark of young trees, so we put plastic wrap around their bases. We use pheromones to attract male insects and then trap them so they can't mate. When insect eggs are discovered, we cover them with dormant oil, such as canola, which smothers them. We've imported tiffs, a mite-eating insect from New Zealand. They've done well here and now other orchards are asking us for them."

Then there are other insects on which the orchard is dependent.

"Honey bees are our best friends," says Mabey. "Every spring a bee keeper brings his hives and the bees do the work of pollination, that only they can do."

All of this busy-bee work results not only in luscious fruit, but in jars of No.1 Golden Liquid Honey, sold in the boutique, along with fresh fruit and vegetables and fruit jams from the nearby Les Petits Fruits de Pr -d'en-Haut. There's also Belliveau's refreshing apple cider and sparkling juices (non-alcoholic) and their award winning fruit wines. Over the years, wines, including Belliveau Poire, Pomme Glac e, Bluet Sauvage and Sparkling Apple have taken top honours at the All Canadian Wine Championships in Windsor Ontario and the Atlantic Wine Competition, bringing home double gold, silver and bronze medals.

Notwithstanding their move into the sophisticated world of wine production, Belliveau Orchard has remained true to its heritage as a family-oriented business by dedicating part of the operation as a U-Pick.

On Saturdays and Sundays until mid-October, Bourgeois invites families and groups of friends to take a tractor ride into the orchard and pick their own apples. Fun activities for kids are available, including bales of hay for jumping into. The orchard is a photographer's paradise, in both blossom and harvest time, so if you come, bring a camera.

Additional information:

Vitamin C Cholesterol Asthma, Stress Management
Can You Take Vitamin C with Cholesterol Medication? eHow.com
The Vitamin C Apple Pectin Cure for High Cholesterol by Bill Sardi
Effect of Vitamin C Depletion on Serum Cholesterol 1 and
Reduce Cholesterol with Vitamin C
Effect of vitamin C on serum lipids and electrolyte profile of
http://riverviewthisweek.canad...

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