Soergel Orchards

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Our family farm's history began in the mid 1850s when a German immigrant by the name of John Conrad Soergel settled on this very spot and began planting apple trees. The apples were sold wholesale for the first half of the 1900s, but in the mid 1960s a severe spring frost left very few apples on the trees. At this time, Warren and I decided it was not worth the long trip to town everyday to sell the few apples we had. We started our own roadside stand located at the corner of Brandt School Road and Wexford Bayne Road (now Route 910). When the business outgrew the original building, a larger stand was built. Then, in 1973 Interstate 79 claimed 14 acres of apples. Nevertheless, our family felt it was time for further expansion and in the early 1970s the present market was established. Today, our immediate family includes my husband Warren, our four children, and their spouses: Reed and Danetta, Randy and Beth, Richard and Mary Kay, and Linda and Larry. As we update this family history, we need to acknowledge our grandchildren and great grandchildren. There are thirteen grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren. Some of the grandchildren have come back from college to work on the farm. Eric and his wife Megan, along with Katie are managing the market, while Adam is married and finds his niche in growing the vegetables that we sell in the market. Leisl is biking across America this year, Andrew is married and is a nurse in North Carolina, and Amy opened Naturally Soergel’s in the spring of 2009. Meredith is married and is a nurse in eastern Pennsylvania. Deonna, Warren, and Cameron are in college. Annie has a career in Maryland, Tessa is married and has a career in Virginia, and Peter is learning the wine industry in California. Although most of them will be pursuing other careers, they all spend time working at the market or farm when they are at home. Because our children and grandchildren have continued the farm and marketing, the business has continued to grow and hopefully will do so for some time to come. Our farm consists of 450 acres in several different locations. Warren, our dog Lucy, and I live in the white farmhouse to the right of the market. The original house burned to the ground in 1911, but was rebuilt on the same foundation. Around the market we have planted a variety of fruit trees, mostly apple, but also cherry, plum and pear. Richard and Mary Kay live off of Wexford Run Road and have many varieties of apple trees on their farm. Both Reed and Danetta and Linda and Larry own farms one mile apart in Connoquenessing Township in Butler County with a total of 160 acres. They raise all of the corn, pumpkins, and many garden vegetables. Reed and Danetta also have turkeys, horses, and ponies. Randy and Beth live around the corner from the market and their main interest is in the greenhouse. Randy started with several greenhouses as a complement to the market in 1980. Since then, the Garden Center and many more greenhouses have been added. In 1986 we began our own rack and cloth cider press, which Larry operates. He presses at least three times a week and more often in the fall.

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