Carrying the Leahy family orchard into an organic future.

Nestled at the foot of the Adirondack Mountains in Montérégie, the Leahy family orchard has benefited from the region’s mild climate for generations. In 1978, James Leahy stepped into his family’s legacy, carrying on traditions while staying open to the changes that would come decades later. Inspired by an organic farmer leasing part of his land, James made the bold choice to transition the family’s hobby farm into a fully organic apple orchard, taking on a new set of challenges.

Out went the synthetic pesticides, and in came natural solutions. James adopted sustainable techniques and in 2009, he earned the farm its organic certification. To his surprise, the transition was extremely smooth - naturally resilient, his apple trees didn’t slow down, producing just as many as before.

Bugs are big fans of apples! During the spring bloom, sticky bands help catch sawflies which usually target the blossoms. To keep codling moths (one of the orchard’s main pests) at bay, James has set up birdhouses to attract their natural predators, chickadees. Plus, pheromone diffusers help confuse the moths, making it harder for them to find a mate and reducing damage to the fruit.

Dwarf trees are shaping the orchard’s future. In the next few years, James plans to transition his 50-year-old groves to include more dwarf varieties. These smaller trees take up less space and start producing apples faster (sometimes in just two years!), making the orchard more manageable and allowing him to focus even more on quality.

James’ harvest-fresh apples are here for the picking! When autumn finally rolls around, there’s nothing James enjoys more than heading into the orchard to pick the fruits of his labour. This summer’s warm days and frequent rains brought an especially juicy harvest - try his Spartan, McIntosh, Honeycrisp, Gala, Sunrise, and Paul Red apples, on the Marketplace!