The Great Lakes lake-effect snow belts. A portion, but not all, of these areas contain fruit belts. Winter covering snow and the climate moderation that often accompanies it are only two of the necessary factors for economic fruit agriculture.

Fruit Belt is a term in the United States for an area where the microclimate provides good conditions for fruit growing.

Fruit Belts are prominent around the North American Great Lakes region, notably West Michigan (Fruit Ridge) and western Northern Lower Michigan in tandem,[1][2][3][4] and the southern shore of Lake Erie.[5] The conditions that produce a micro-climate favorable to fruit cultivation are the same that produce lake-effect snow; therefore, Fruit Belts and snowbelts are often concurrent. The map at right shows Great Lakes snowbelts which cover a somewhat larger area than the fruit belt. Notably, there are no fruit belts in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.[citation needed] A Fruit Belt also exists in Central Washington State.[6] Berries are grown on the West Coast.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Fruit Growing Conditions". Southwest Michigan Fruit Belt Project. Archived from the original on 2008-09-08. Retrieved 2011-08-14.
  2. ^ "Image of the Month: Fruit Belt Archived 2013-12-02 at the Wayback Machine". Archives of Michigan, Michigan Historical Center, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, October 2007.
  3. ^ "The Fruit Belt Archived 2012-03-02 at the Wayback Machine" (historical marker S0155, erected 1958). Michigan Historical Commission, Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment. Webpage retrieved on 2010-06-29.
  4. ^ Henry, Alfred J. (1906). Climatology of the United States, Bulletin Q. U.S. Weather Bureau. p. 556.
  5. ^ "Lake Erie Concord Grape Belt: Concord Grape Belt Tourism Archived 2013-11-12 at the Wayback Machine". Concord Grape Belt Heritage Association. Retrieved 2013-04-06.
  6. ^ Friedlander, Paul J.C. "Circle of Beauty". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-08-05. Reprinted in St. Petersburg Times, 1977-07-03.

Further reading


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