Historic Hood River
Hood River Peaches?
6-17-2021
Notes
This one is labeled “Apple Growers Association, John Mohr with key.” I don’t know who the VIP is receiving the key, and I’m pretty sure those are peaches, not apples. The key is dated August 22, 1954.
ArthurB
I tried to grow peaches here but found leaf curl (fungus) really hard to control. I know peaches and almonds were grown in Hood River in the early orchards (pre-1900) so I wonder if springs were a bit drier back then.
L.E.
I don’t know this for sure, but I was always under the impression that White Salmon grew better peaches than Hood River. I wonder if that is because White Salmon seems to be drier?
Kevin
A business acquaintance from MA had a picture in his office of him wind surfing near the hatchery. I remarked that I lived up the bluff in Underwood. He said he loved the fresh fruit and especially the world famous Mackinaw peaches. Having never heard of them, I Google’d this varietal and found they were a complete fabrication from the Seinfeld show. Wonder if someone here had played a joke on him. If so, it was a good one!
JEC
"a complete fabrication…" or are they?
https://oikostreecrops.com/products/fruit-plants-organically-grown/apricot-peach-trees/mackinaw-peach/
L.E.
Thanks for the interesting site JEC.
Kevin
JEC – thanks! In this case life does imitate art since the Seinfeld episode came first. Pretty good marketing. It is really funny that they can’t ship to OR.
TBird
Yes, it seems the Seinfeld writers slipped in a few Pacific Northwest references here and there. Maybe one of the characters was supposed to be from the PNW? But those New York writers probably didn’t realize that Mackinaw is definitely a Great Lakes word. It’s derived from the Ojibway word Michilimackinac, which roughly translates to "the Great Turtle." It refers to the shape of Mackinac Island (essentially a big hump of limestone) that’s located in the Straits of Mackinac where Lakes Michigan and Huron meet.
TBird
And as a Great Lakes transplant, I can attest that the peaches from the Hood River Valley are better than anything I ever tasted in Michigan 😉
TBird
And as a Great Lakes transplant, I can attest that the peaches from the Hood River Valley are better than anything I ever tasted in Michigan 😉