​Ripley “For Our Youth” Club learns about apples and makes applesauce

It was a perfect September day for the Ripley and District Horticultural Society’s “For Our Youth” Club to meet at leader Rhonda Curran’s rural property, south of Kincardine. Her beautifully treed yard and different varieties of apple trees promised great things for the day’s activities.

The club began with a Roll Call: What’s your favourite apple variety? This was followed by the club song and then everyone got down to business.

The tree for the month of September is the apple, which many of the members recalled from the exploration of apple varieties during club meetings last year. Everyone seemed to have a different apple preference, from Red Delicious to “those little yellow ones” to Macintosh.

As a group, the club members began walking around Rhonda’s property to identify as many trees as they could, starting with the three apple trees that would provide them with the ingredient for the main activity: making applesauce!

Leader Kim Lowry encouraged the group to examine and touch the apple tree leaves, and make note of their texture and shape to get a sense of how they differed from a cherry tree growing beside them. It was hard for the members to tear themselves away from the temptation of picking all the ripe apples, but they persevered, strolling along to identify six more types of trees.

Looking at bark, leaf shape, leaf texture, size and shape, the kids learned about poplar, mulberry, peach, pear, maple, spruce, oak. They even identified (with leader Melody Smillie’s help) an elm tree, much to Rhonda’s surprise. Who knows what you’ll find during a youth club meeting?

Once they had identified all the trees on the property, the youth headed back to the house. Rhonda had her kitchen all set up and ready to teach the kids how to make applesauce, and the rest of the group would be working on Ripley-Huron Fall Fair entries in the beautiful sunshine.

Applesauce is not difficult to make, but it sure requires a lot of steps to turn just-picked apples into delicious sauce. First, the members ran to Rhonda’s trees and picked bowls full of fruit. Next, they washed the apples, then cut them in half under leader Bonnie Ernest’s supervision. (At the club, learning how to use knives safely is a skill we feel every kid should know.)

Since Rhonda’s family doesn’t spray the trees, the members had to cut around a few spots here and there. Once the apples were chopped, the kids took them from the counter over to the stove, where Rhonda and leader Heather Newman demonstrated how to boil apple pieces with a little bit of water until softened. Then the fun part began: squishing the apples through the hand-powered food mill.

The members squealed with delight as their efforts yielded beautiful pink sauce that flowed into big bowls. The mill strained out the skins and seeds, which helped to colour the sauce and make apple prep much easier. Each person got to fill a small jar to take home, and everyone got a taste of the homemade, naturally-sweet fall treat. We love showing members how to make their own food using locally-grown fruit and vegetables, knowing these are skills they’ll put to good use in their own homes.

Meanwhile, outside in the warm September sunshine, the other group members sat at the picnic table and decided what type of entry they would create to go into the fair. Senior members chose between drawing a tree and creating an animal out of pine cones; junior members created art using leaves, or drew pictures of a bee’s home. We chatted and laughed, helped one another with stubborn glue bottles, pipe cleaners and prickly pine cones, and talked about the fair.

As always, leaders Melody and Kim were impressed with the kids’ creativity and artistic abilities. We hope some prizes were won at the fair.

Long-time club member Maria Morais entered the junior ambassador competition and won. She gave a speech about her experience participating in the junior agricultural club, which meant so much to everyone in the club. Congratulations, Maria! We are proud of you.

The meeting wrapped up with applesauce-tasting, snack time and the beloved treasure box, sending everyone home with samples to share with family (or eat on the way home!).

The members congratulated leader Melody who received a Pine River Watershed Initiative Network (PRWIN) Environmental Award of Merit at the fair. The youth club is so grateful for your leadership, committment and continued administration of the club.

The final meeting of 2024 will be held at Melody’s home later this month, where members will be examining the potatoes they planted there in the spring, enjoying some crafts, and celebrating with a pizza party.