We’re always busy at Pine Island Cranberry, but now that spring is officially here, we’re really kicking into high gear. One of our big projects right now is renovating Sim Place, an old cranberry operation we acquired in 2004. We’re taking extant bogs, replanting with new varieties, and upgrading the outdated irrigation system.

These bogs are being planted with Crimson Queen®, a new variety developed by Rutgers University, chosen to maximize efficiency and increase yields when redeveloping existing bogs.

Already-rooted vines, as supplied by Integrity Propagation, are taken from the truck and loaded onto the planter. Six workers seated in the back drop the vines into the carousel (pictured below) and then the vines are distributed into the pre-dug furrow:

They are followed by other crew members, who make sure that the vines have been placed correctly:

And they’re ready to grow! These bogs should be ready to harvest in about three years.

Irrigation, of course, is the next step, so it’s important that the sprinklers are correctly installed:

Heavy supervision is not necessary, but Bill enjoys going out onto the property and seeing how things are going!

Next week: it’s time to start taking the water off the bogs.