Traverse, Northern Michigan’s Magazine | JUL ’19 83arah and Phil Hallstedt are a first-
generation farming family growing
eight varieties of sweet cherries
at their U-Pick farm, Hallstedt
Homestead, in Northport. At King Orchards
U-Pick, Bakery & Farm Markets in Kewadin
and Central Lake, brothers John and Jim
King, along with their wives, Betsy and
Rose, and their children have been grow-
ing fruit since 1980. The Kings currently
harvest over 140 acres of Montmorency
tart cherries, plus Balatons and black sweet
cherries.
We asked these families to share the
juiciest details of their life on the orchard.
Here’s their farmer wisdom...
What three words best describe what
you feel when you put your head on the
pillow after a long day in harvest season?
Hallstedts: Exhausted, satisfied, plan-
ning ahead!
Kings: Satisfaction, optimism and
gratitude.
What’s a fun part about your jobs
as cherry farmers?
Hallstedts: We love sharing the experi-
ence of what we have here, and the joy they
have of picking and eating an amazing fruit!
Many people don’t know what a difference
it makes to have truly fresh fruit right off
the tree. We love exposing folks to fresh
fruit, many for the first time.
Kings: We tend the land together, we
run our business with the support of each
other and we wholeheartedly welcome
visitors to our farm, treating them as part of
the family. We love sharing the abundance
(and joy!) of our harvest with our custom-
ers. We take pride in getting our hands dirty
and seeing the smiles that result.What do people say they love most
about the U-Pick?
Kings: They love being in a working,
healthy orchard and seeing where their
food actually comes from. Families love
this unique outdoor experience. This is
an activity that grandma is as happy to
be participating in as the 3-year-old is.
You’re never too young or too old to enjoy
U-Picking (it is always fun to see the kids
and orchards grow from year to year).Tell me about some of your best or most
beloved customers?
Kings: We love kids at King Orchards so
many of our favorite customers are 3 feet
tall, when running down the grassy row is
as much fun as picking the fruit.For the current generation: What was it
like to grow up as cherry farmers’ kids?
Kings: Tons of fun! My parents were
flexible enough that they were able to come
to every sporting event but always went
back to work at night. I always called my
mom the best 5-minute chef and since we
always lived right next to the market, our
dinners were always interrupted by mymom running out to greet a customer who
happened to drive in after hours. Taking a
tractor ride or going on a fruit delivery with
my uncle Jim never got old. Unlike most kids
who vacationed in the summer, our fun was
always centered around snow, whether it
was skiing or the ice-skating rink my dad
made in the barnyard. —Second-generation
farmer, Jack KingWhat is the vibe you hope to create
at the farm?
Hallstedts: To feel welcomed (and
not intimidated if they are picking for the
first time); excited anticipation of being
at “ground zero” of what it takes to get
good fresh fruit to the market. We provide
everything they need: buckets, instruc-
tion how to pick and bags in which to take
home their fruit. We also try to teach them
about how we follow environmental and
groundwater safety rules and that we try
to be good stewards of the land.What varieties do you grow?
Hallstedts: Ten years ago, Phil chose
eight varieties that were either awesome
to eat fresh, and/or could handle shipping,
as we would like to be able to start direct-
shipping this summer. We grow Ebony
Pearls, Attikas, Reginas, Sweethearts,
Ulsters, Cavaliers, White Gold and Summit.What advice do you give your U-Pickers?
Kings: One advantage to picking
tarts at King Orchards is that we have aText by Emily Tyra // Photos by Andy Wakeman and Dave Weidner