RONAOKE, Va. (AP) – Virginia farmers are concerned after chilly weather earlier this month damaged much of their fruit crops. Jimmy Bryant owns Bryant Orchards in Botetourt County. He tells the Roanoke Times that the freeze killed about 20 percent of his apples in a 3-acre block. A Virginia Cooperative Extension agent in Fluvanna County reported an estimated 100 percent loss of the county’s peach crop. David Stanley, co-owner of Stanburn Winery in Stuart, said he lost all of his chardonnay grapes. Tenley Weaver, is co-owner of Floyd County’s Good Food-Good People. She says the fruit loss will likely mean higher prices for consumers, especially at small retail markets. Bedford County Farm Bureau President W.P. Johnson said farmers are concerned about the possibility of another freeze before mid-May.
