As the temperatures descend in Monroe County, sunny days in the sixty-degree range suddenly become ultra-valuable, for both current comfort levels and for our memory card catalog, to pull up during the deep-cold impact of winters core. Maple Ridge Orchard, owned and run by Domingo and Elizabeth Rodriguez, provides 22 varieties of apples throughout the year, as well as a deep well of memories, for those in search of family fun, without the headache of commercialism and gate fees. Maple Ridge is a pure, family-run orchard that serves as a literal playground, as well as providing the highest quality apples, cider and even donuts.
Located near Cashton’s Amish country, the journey to Maple Ridge Orchard, in and of itself, is a gift for the eyes, and a blessing with no disguise. Lush green valleys usher in all visitors, regardless of their trips origination point. Every mile driven toward the orchard has stress and worry flying out the window, obliterating into tiny thought dust, and laying unrecognizable, scattered amongst the road foliage.
The Rodriguez’s did not move to the area with the intention of initiating an apple orchard, but an interesting turn approached them in 2002. The county informed them that they were sitting on 22 acres of land, which put them in a “recreational land” tax bracket. So, either Domingo and Elizabeth needed to plant some type of agriculture, or a heavy tax would be enforced. At this point, they had eight children.
One day, while coming home from work with a friend, Domingo ate a Honey Crisp apple that he had purchased at a nearby farm. Domingo immediately turned the vehicle around, went back to the farm, and bought a 3 pound bag of the apples, for 7 dollars. Elizabeth was upset, as money was tight. “Why would you pay this much for apples? I can get the same amount for 3 dollars, at the store!” After the family partook in the Honey Crisps feast, a new energy filled the household.
They went out and bought their first 80 trees, all Honey Crisp apple trees. They all still stand in one row, alongside the road and can be seen as people approach the orchard.
The Rodriguez’s were not professionals at this point, by any stretch of the imagination. While there are about twenty apple trees that can self-pollinate, most are dioecious trees, which simply (or not so simply) means that they need to cross-pollinate with another tree, in order to produce fruit. The Rodriguez’s, armed with this vital information, then went out and bought some Gala apple trees, to curtail the issue.
In 2004, they sold their first three bushels of apples to the Viroqua Food Co-op. “We were tickled to sell our first bushels,” Elizabeth said. Domingo’s original thought was that he would sell the apples out of the back of his truck. That idea would soon vanish, as their orchard moved its way up towards it current count, of six-thousand trees. In 2014, Domingo returned home from his job to a worn out family and an ultimatum: quit your job, or we have to sell the business. Domingo left his job, and Maple Ridge Orchard had officially become a fulltime family business.
Over the years, new additions to the business have popped up. A pumpkin patch joined the business around 2012, after the Rodriguez’s were asked by many customers if they had one. The pumpkin patch sits on three acres and is open in the latter part of October, when pumpkins pique in the spotlight, hitting the “High demand” zone. As well, a solid-sized sandbox, complete with giant tractor tires, sits adjacent to a 20 foot culvert slide (shorts not recommended). A 40 foot tower casts a shadow over the slide and sandbox, ready for adventure seekers, including in-shape visitors and kids that want an incredible view of the surrounding area. Elizabeth is asked several times a week, if the tower is a tree stand for deer hunting.
The Rodriguez’s have hired help, and their sons, Michael and Ben, are of enormous help to them. “Michael takes off from his job this time of year,” explains Elizabeth. “He is such a blessing to have around because he knows exactly how to run everything and knows what needs to be done.”
The family business has faced some issues with supply chains, like the time they were ready to press 125 gallons of apple cider, when they suddenly realized that the company that sends them the bottles had forgotten to include the lids. It was four days before they would see the covers.
On a warm, sunny day, apples and memories can be gathered and stored at the Maple Ridge Orchard. If a painter were to set up a canvas at Maple Ridge, the finished memory-scape would have giggling children on tire swings, Domingo standing over the apple-cider donuts as they left the building just as fast as they could be made, wagons being pulled with self-picked apples and an occasional child, Elizabeth in the apple cooler explaining Honey Crisps and River Belles, Michael and Ben at the register tallying transactions, and Riley, the elder, seemingly innocent golden retriever, stealing apples and donuts from unsuspecting customers. It would be the perfect painting, if it included only one of these memories, but visitors can take all of these memories away with them, for free. Of course, there is also apple cider, donuts, jams, syrups and apples galore.
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