As we near the end of the 2025 harvest, we compiled here some of our seasonal observations. Extension specialists from across the state have contributed regional reports, overall conditions are summarized at the beginning, and graphs of weather conditions and overall insect flights are found below.
Overall conditions
- Winter conditions were mild in most locations. Very few instances of extreme cold or mid-winter warm-ups were noted, resulting in little winter injury. Isolated locations (primarily in the Hudson Valley) experienced a few very cold nights in February leading to some stone fruit losses from bud freezing and death.
- Spring conditions were close to ‘normal’ in most of the state. Green Tip and Bloom dates were near average dates, slightly early in WNY. Pollination conditions were exceptionally good in most of the Hudson Valley and Champlain Valley (very warm and sunny), but very marginal in the Capital region and some locations in Western NY (prolonged bloom with cool, wet, overcast weather). Cool weather following bloom (during petal fall and 10-12mm windows) in most of the state made thinning with PGRs challenging this season.
- Summer conditions were very dry in most locations in the two months leading up to harvest, making irrigation essential, but also leading to less summer disease pressure. Isolated hail and tornadoes were reported, particularly in the Finger Lakes region, south of the Lake Ontario region. A heat dome in June led to very hot conditions
- Insect Pests. The cool spring conditions led to an extended emergence period of many of the lepidopteran pests (notably codling moth, oriental fruit moth), and plum curculio. Increased tarnished plant bug and European apple sawfly damage has been reported over the past few seasons. Woolly apple aphid outbreaks continue to be sporadic. ERM outbreaks were evident in many locations, likely due to hot, dry summer conditions. Apple maggot trap captures were high in locations with known populations, particularly in the CV. SLF is extremely problematic in the HV and moving to other parts of the state.
- Two wet springs in a row has led to some scab outbreaks in orchards throughout the state, particularly on susceptible varieties. Fire blight was very bad in some locations in WNY and CV. Powdery mildew reports have increased across the state the past few years. Summer disease management appears to be very good this year, likely due to dry summer conditions.
- Crop load and quality. Yields have corresponded mostly with bloom/pollination conditions and the lack of rainfall leading up to harvest. Where bloom was very good (primarily HV and CV), crop load has been on the heavier side; while regions that experienced a prolonged, cool, rainy bloom (WNY and Capital Region) fruit set was reduced and crop is slightly lower than average. Lack of rainfall for most the summer/fall has led to smaller fruit size on average. Harvest dates are slightly ahead of average, but later than 2024. Fruit quality is excellent, with very good red color development, variety flavor, firmness, and brix in general.
Regional Summaries
Click on the accordion menu below to see season summaries of weather, horticulture, and pest pressure written by regional specialists.
Craig Kahlke, Mario Miranda Sazo, Janet van Zoeren, CCE LOFT
Vaughn Gingerich, Lake Ontario Fruit Consulting LLC
Overview: A more traditional winter without too many warmups led to green tip dates in tree fruit in early April, only about a week earlier than the 50-75 year average. There were some minor freezing temperatures to follow, however, there was very little damage. The month of May produced above average precipitation in which growers struggled to keep growing tissue covered to prevent apple scab infection. The bloom period was more a normal one, but was followed by periods of carbohydrate surpluses in which trees did not respond well to chemical thinners. Despite this, bouts of hot temperatures in the month of June produce quite a bit of natural fruit thinning and for the most part the hand thinning job on most farms does not look to be cost prohibitive. However, there are some varieties and farms that have a more intensive job of hand thinning to complete.
Reports of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries were showing good crops for most in our region. Early summer fruits such as sweet cherries have produced good crops with good quality overall. As of this publication, we have avoided tornadoes and hail storms that have plagued other areas of the state. However, we still are over a month away from the start of apple harvest in earnest. More heat in late June and into the time of this writing in late-July (highs in the upper 80’s and low 90’s) led to significant sunburn. In addition, many areas of our territory have been without rain for a significant amount of time. The early rains in spring have produced good fruit size but we need precipitation to continue to size fruit and prevent tree stress. Those who have access to irrigation are irrigating regularly.
A short summary of the 2025 thinning season: The 2025 thinning season started with a prolonged bloom across our region with the cold weather. We had poor bee flight during early part of bloom but then good bee flight in later part of bloom. There were not major frost issues this season. In general, we got a good fruit set. The petal fall spray was applied under cool conditions with a significant carbohydrate surplus. Fruitlets during this cool period did not grow too much and first signs of significant growth were measured 10-12 days after the sprays. As expected, the cool conditions gave poor thinning. The 10-13 mm spray went on under better conditions but still had a carbohydrate surplus. Growers who waited and applied thinners at the end of the 10-13mm thinning window around June 3 and 4 saw good thinning results 7-8 days after the sprays. When needed, several rescue sprays were applied to fruitlets in the range of 15-25mm the week of June 9-13. First signs of good thinning began to be seen on several Gala blocks visited on Thursday June 12 and Friday June 13.
Summer and Harvest conditions: Western NY had very little rain throughout the summer and into the fall. Therefore, early crop estimates from June overpredicted what our actual crop will be. Smaller fruit size and a reduced crop, especially for processing growers- is the reality. Processing and slicer markets are paying very high prices and are having difficulty getting the fruit they need. On the fresh side, quality so far is very good as sugars are way up and varietal flavor is excellent. Fruit have also colored very well. Thanks to the dry weather there has been little slow down in harvest activities. Maturity is running earlier than normal but slightly behind last year, which was a record early year from start to finish. Most growers will be done with harvest by November 1st.
Insects and Diseases
Apple scab pressure was extremely high due to excessive rainfall in 2025 and a wet, scabby year in 2024. Some weather stations encountered measurable rain every day in June and most days in July. Powdery mildew primary infections are extremely high throughout the region, this appears to be building over the past few years. Fire blight was extremely problematic in WNY; a cold bloom period seemed to produce very little blossom blight infection conditions. But very hot, humid Juen and July weather produced region-wide shoot blight problems.
Plum curculio pressure was relatively low this year. Other insects managed at pink and petal fall were more problematic, including tarnished plant bug and European apple sawfly. Oriental fruit moth captures were high, while codling moth captures were very spread out and quite low. Third generations of these lepidopteran pests are becoming more common with longer, warmer falls over the past few years. Sporadic outbreaks of summer pests included WAA in September, European red mites in the hot, dry weather beginning in July, and San Jose scale in isolated locations.
Michael Basedow, CCE ENYCHP
Horticulture.
Green Tip in Peru normal, right around April 15th. Full bloom on Macs was right around May 12, just a little early. Unlike some portions of the state, the Champlain Valley had a relatively quick, hot bloom with good pollination weather. Thinning was difficult, as we had poor carbohydrate status during petal fall and 12mm timings again. Some blocks were also off after the 2023 freeze event. Crop load ended up on the heavier side this year, except where folks had frost in 2023, or thinned aggressively with Accede during the 20mm thinning window in a few locations. Dry conditions during the summer gave small fruit in some varieties, but also high brix and firmness. Coloring conditions were pretty good this year, making for overall excellent quality during harvest. Saratoga had a cold, prolonged bloom. Fruit set was in question, so many growers thinned lightly and were happy with the results as we saw a lot of extra drop from the poor set.
Insects.
WAA was problematic in a number of Champlain Valley blocks again this year, despite growers being on top of their spray timings. ALCM continues to be bad in the Champlain. Growers are managing populations, but it is requiring multiple target applications to keep the various generations under control. Apple maggot counts were very high in the Champlain Valley this year on our baited traps. Multiple weeks of captures in non-baited traps as well. One farm reported early stink bug damage in his Honeycrisp. This is a known hotspot multiple years in a row. We plan to trap there next season to keep an eye on things.
Diseases.
Scab was mostly under control, but we did end up with some scabby blocks requiring secondary scab management throughout the summer. Fire blight was very bad in a few blocks, many Cortlands have been cut down. Powdery mildew was very bad in Honeycrisp blocks across the Champlain Valley. Summer diseases were mostly managed ok.
Dan Donahue, CCE ENYCHP and Anna Wallis, Cornell IPM
General conditions.
Winter conditions were mild, with few instances of extreme cold or early warming. The exception was isolated locations in the central part of the HV that reported -20F for two nights in February resulting in stone fruit losses. There were no spring frosts reported. Pollination conditions this season were good. Weather was clear and warm, with little wind for nearly the entire duration of bloom. Excellent honey bee and native been activity was observed. Conditions after bloom were very cool. Ample rainfall was recorded throughout the spring. The “heat dome” in June led to very hot weather and significant sunburn. Summer and fall conditions have been very dry. Mostly irrigation capacity was sufficient to supplement rainfall. Beautiful weather has led to excellent agritourism/UPick conditions throughout the fall.
Horticulture.
Yield estimates are about 85% of a full apple crop. Reduced yields of Honeycrisp and Fuji likely due to issues with return bloom. Where thinning was adequate fruit size has been good. Thinning was challenging this season. A cool period following bloom resulted in reduced activity of PGR thinners. Growers who delayed thinning applications until the 10-12 mm stage often experienced inadequate thinning and an increased need for hand thinning to break up clusters. The window for effective thinning this season was from full bloom through petal fall. Fruit quality has been very good. Red color has been excellent this season. We’ve starting to receive reports of chilling injury in stored Honeycrisp (soft scald, soggy breakdown). So far these cases appear to be associated with the storage of bulk fruit, or packed fruit, at 33F. A preliminary (30 day) rating of Bitter Pit in a Honeycrisp trial suggests that BP incidence is slightly higher than average this season and worse than 2024. Tree decline cases have been observed in Fuji on Pajam 2 and Gala on G.11. Water stress associated with a lack of irrigation appeared to be a contributing factor to the RAD-like decline observed in the Pajam 2 block. Tree death resulted from the loss of 100% of rootstock cambium tissue occasionally associated with cankering just above the graft union. “Fading” trees had the same damage except that the girdling was less than 100%.
Insects and Diseases.
Cool spring conditions resulted in slow, prolonged emergence of lepidopteran pests (codling moth and oriental fruit moth) and plum curculio. Pressure appeared to be close to normal and management was very good. The wet spring led to challenging apple scab management, especially after 2 years of wet spring conditions and some secondary infections that slipped through in 2024. Mite outbreaks were reported in a number of locations, likely due to the extremely hot, dry conditions experience throughout summer and fall. Summer disease pressure was low and management was very good, due to dry conditions. Spotted lanternfly populations are incredibly high throughout the Hudson Valley, and it appears to be moving quickly to other regions of the state.
Weather Graphical and Tabular Summaries
Click on the accordion menu below to see graphical and tabular displays of weather data by region.
Download the Excel File here: 2025 Weather Data
Geneva (Cornell AgriTech North)
2025 Daily High and Low Temperature and Precipitation Data for Geneva (AgriTech North), NY NEWA Station
2025 Monthly Temperature and Precipitation for Geneva (Cornell AgriTech North), NY NEWA Station
| Month | Total Precip (in) | Avg High Temp (F) | Max High Temp (F) | Avg Low Temp (F) | Min Low Temp (F) |
| Nov ('24) | 3.9 | 50.5 | 79.7 | 37.8 | 26.1 |
| Dec ('24) | 1.9 | 37.0 | 61.2 | 26.2 | 0.5 |
| Jan | 0.7 | 28.1 | 43.9 | 18.3 | -1.8 |
| Feb | 1.0 | 32.0 | 46.9 | 19.5 | 1.8 |
| Mar | 0.9 | 50.3 | 72.3 | 30.3 | 9.0 |
| Apr | 2.8 | 57.1 | 86.2 | 38.4 | 22.6 |
| May | 5.3 | 64.9 | 83.1 | 49.0 | 39.2 |
| Jun | 2.0 | 79.0 | 95.7 | 61.4 | 46.4 |
| Jul | 1.9 | 84.7 | 93.9 | 65.1 | 51.3 |
| Aug | 1.6 | 80.6 | 95.2 | 59.2 | 50.5 |
| Sep | 0.5 | 75.6 | 82.6 | 53.1 | 43.9 |
| Oct | 1.6 | 62.8 | 85.5 | 45.5 | 29.2 |
Fairville
2025 Daily High and Low Temperature and Precipitation Data for Fairville, NY NEWA Station
2025 Monthly Temperature and Precipitation for Fairville, NY NEWA Station
| Month | Total Precip (in) | Avg High Temp (F) | Max High Temp (F) | Avg Low Temp (F) | Min Low Temp (F) |
| Nov ('24) | 4.0 | 51.0 | 81.6 | 36.4 | 24.5 |
| Dec ('24) | 2.4 | 37.8 | 61.2 | 25.5 | -2.0 |
| Jan | 0.9 | 29.3 | 44.4 | 18.9 | 0.6 |
| Feb | 8.7 | 32.6 | 48.4 | 18.8 | -2.9 |
| Mar | 1.7 | 50.5 | 74.8 | 29.5 | 10.3 |
| Apr | 5.3 | 57.0 | 88.1 | 36.6 | 21.3 |
| May | 5.8 | 65.5 | 83.2 | 46.8 | 36.0 |
| Jun | 4.1 | 80.9 | 98.3 | 59.0 | 44.6 |
| Jul | 1.4 | 87.1 | 98.3 | 62.0 | 47.6 |
| Aug | 5.0 | 82.1 | 96.7 | 56.2 | 44.8 |
| Sep | 1.8 | 76.1 | 83.9 | 50.4 | 41.0 |
| Oct | 1.7 | 64.0 | 88.3 | 42.0 | 27.2 |
Williamson
2025 Daily High and Low Temperature and Precipitation Data for Williamson, NY NEWA Station
2025 Monthly Temperature and Precipitation for Williamson, NY NEWA Station
| Month | Total Precip (in) | Avg High Temp (F) | Max High Temp (F) | Avg Low Temp (F) | Min Low Temp (F) |
| Nov ('24) | 2.3 | 51.6 | 81.1 | 39.4 | 27.6 |
| Dec ('24) | 1.7 | 38.9 | 62.7 | 28.6 | 6.5 |
| Jan | 0.9 | 29.9 | 42.1 | 20.8 | 3.4 |
| Feb | 0.7 | 33.2 | 50.0 | 21.5 | 4.2 |
| Mar | 2.3 | 49.4 | 75.7 | 31.2 | 11.7 |
| Apr | 2.2 | 54.8 | 85.3 | 37.8 | 23.7 |
| May | 5.1 | 62.8 | 77.7 | 48.1 | 37.7 |
| Jun | 2.6 | 77.4 | 94.1 | 61.1 | 47.7 |
| Jul | 0.9 | 84.3 | 94.9 | 65.5 | 50.5 |
| Aug | 1.7 | 80.3 | 92.3 | 60.9 | 50.2 |
| Sep | 0.3 | 75.8 | 85.8 | 55.0 | 45.2 |
| Oct | 0.0 | 63.4 | 84.6 | 47.8 | 34.9 |
Medina
2025 Daily High and Low Temperatures and Precipitation Data for Medina, NY NEWA Station
2025 Monthly Temperature and Precipitation for Medina, NY NEWA Station
| Month | Total Precip (in) | Avg High Temp (F) | Max High Temp (F) | Avg Low Temp (F) | Min Low Temp (F) |
| Nov ('24) | 2.9 | 50.7 | 77.7 | 37.2 | 23.7 |
| Dec ('24) | 3.0 | 37.7 | 60.6 | 26.6 | 0.3 |
| Jan | 1.3 | 28.6 | 41.2 | 18.0 | -4.5 |
| Feb | 1.1 | 31.2 | 50.0 | 18.7 | 0.1 |
| Mar | 1.7 | 48.8 | 75.6 | 29.7 | 7.5 |
| Apr | 3.8 | 55.5 | 80.8 | 37.3 | 21.9 |
| May | 3.9 | 64.1 | 79.2 | 48.0 | 34.7 |
| Jun | 2.6 | 78.1 | 90.5 | 60.4 | 44.6 |
| Jul | 0.8 | 83.7 | 92.5 | 63.7 | 50.4 |
| Aug | 1.8 | 79.4 | 92.5 | 58.5 | 44.8 |
| Sep | 1.5 | 75.3 | 83.6 | 52.6 | 42.5 |
| Oct | 3.2 | 63.2 | 85.1 | 44.5 | 28.2 |
Appleton North
2025 Daily High and Low Temperature and Precipitation Data for Appleton North NEWA Station
2025 Monthly Temperature and Precipitation for Appleton North, NY NEWA Station
| Month | Total Precip (in) | Avg High Temp (F) | Max High Temp (F) | Avg Low Temp (F) | Min Low Temp (F) |
| Nov ('24) | 1.8 | 51.0 | 77.1 | 39.1 | 26.9 |
| Dec ('24) | 3.1 | 38.1 | 58.7 | 27.9 | 3.5 |
| Jan | 1.8 | 29.6 | 43.2 | 20.0 | -2.2 |
| Feb | 1.2 | 31.3 | 50.3 | 20.6 | 4.1 |
| Mar | 1.8 | 46.4 | 74.0 | 30.1 | 9.4 |
| Apr | 2.1 | 53.8 | 81.2 | 37.2 | 23.0 |
| May | 4.0 | 62.3 | 80.2 | 47.5 | 34.4 |
| Jun | 1.4 | 76.8 | 94.2 | 60.1 | 44.6 |
| Jul | 1.9 | 82.4 | 92.2 | 64.8 | 51.1 |
| Aug | 2.2 | 77.0 | 91.3 | 60.1 | 45.9 |
| Sep | 1.1 | 71.9 | 81.2 | 53.1 | 45.2 |
| Oct | 3.3 | 62.8 | 82.7 | 46.0 | 29.1 |
Peru
2025 Daily High and Low Temperature and Precipitation Data for Peru, NY NEWA Station
2025 Monthly Temperature and Precipitation for Peru (Forrence), NY NEWA Station
| Month | Total Precip (in) | Avg High Temp (F) | Max High Temp (F) | Avg Low Temp (F) | Min Low Temp (F) |
| Nov ('24) | 1.8 | 48.3 | 72.1 | 33.5 | 21.4 |
| Dec ('24) | 1.5 | 32.6 | 57.0 | 20.0 | -4.8 |
| Jan | 0.4 | 26.0 | 39.3 | 13.5 | 0.1 |
| Feb | 0.6 | 28.4 | 46.8 | 10.9 | -6.9 |
| Mar | 1.4 | 45.7 | 69.0 | 25.7 | -0.5 |
| Apr | 2.1 | 55.7 | 80.0 | 35.7 | 18.1 |
| May | 3.2 | 65.0 | 81.8 | 48.5 | 31.4 |
| Jun | 1.4 | 77.3 | 94.4 | 58.2 | 45.4 |
| Jul | 2.2 | 81.9 | 91.5 | 62.5 | 49.3 |
| Aug | 0.9 | 78.5 | 92.8 | 57.0 | 47.2 |
| Sep | 2.1 | 72.5 | 81.5 | 51.2 | 35.7 |
| Oct | 2.6 | 61.8 | 83.4 | 42.1 | 29.5 |
Clifton Park
2025 Daily High and Low Temperature and Precipitation Data for Clifton Park, NY NEWA Station
2025 Monthly Temperature and Precipitation for Clifton Park, NY NEWA Station
| Month | Total Precip (in) | Avg High Temp (F) | Max High Temp (F) | Avg Low Temp (F) | Min Low Temp (F) |
| Nov ('24) | 3.4 | 51.2 | 74.5 | 35.9 | 23.7 |
| Dec ('24) | 2.9 | 34.8 | 56.0 | 22.7 | -5.5 |
| Jan | 1.0 | 29.0 | 41.3 | 17.2 | -6.1 |
| Feb | 2.1 | 31.3 | 48.6 | 18.4 | -1.6 |
| Mar | 2.2 | 49.1 | 70.8 | 29.7 | 5.2 |
| Apr | 4.2 | 58.4 | 81.2 | 39.1 | 24.9 |
| May | 7.4 | 66.7 | 81.4 | 51.0 | 39.2 |
| Jun | 4.3 | 78.3 | 95.3 | 60.7 | 43.5 |
| Jul | 3.5 | 85.3 | 91.2 | 66.6 | 53.6 |
| Aug | 1.1 | 80.7 | 93.0 | 58.8 | 47.1 |
| Sep | 4.2 | 75.6 | 83.1 | 54.1 | 39.1 |
| Oct | 2.7 | 63.0 | 81.9 | 44.7 | 30.7 |
Highland
2025 Daily High and Low Temperature and Precipitation Data for Highland (HVRL), NY NEWA Station
2025 Monthly Temperature and Precipitation for Highland (HVRL), NY NEWA Station
| Month | Total Precip (in) | Avg High Temp (F) | Max High Temp (F) | Avg Low Temp (F) | Min Low Temp (F) |
| Nov ('24) | 4.0 | 55.4 | 82.9 | 38.0 | 26.8 |
| Dec ('24) | 3.8 | 38.5 | 58.8 | 24.9 | -0.2 |
| Jan | 1.2 | 33.7 | 47.8 | 20.0 | -2.4 |
| Feb | 1.5 | 36.8 | 53.2 | 21.6 | 6.6 |
| Mar | 3.3 | 53.8 | 75.2 | 32.4 | 12.2 |
| Apr | 3.7 | 62.1 | 87.4 | 41.6 | 26.2 |
| May | 8.3 | 69.1 | 84.4 | 51.4 | 41.5 |
| Jun | 2.7 | 80.8 | 99.5 | 60.8 | 44.6 |
| Jul | 5.4 | 87.0 | 98.1 | 66.5 | 55.6 |
| Aug | 2.1 | 81.4 | 92.7 | 58.4 | 47.3 |
| Sep | 1.6 | 77.7 | 86.4 | 55.1 | 44.4 |
| Oct | 2.5 | 64.8 | 85.5 | 45.2 | 30.9 |
Pest Trap Capture Graphical Summaries
Click on the accordion menu below to see graphical summaries of Oriental fruit moth (OFM), codling moth (CM), and obliquebanded leafroller (OBLR) trap captures from monitoring locations in major fruit producing regions in NY State.
2025 OFM Trap Captures
2025 CM Trap Captures
2025 OBLR Trap Captures
2025 OFM Trap Captures
2025 Codling Moth Trap Captures
2025 Obliquebanded Leafroller Trap Captures
2025 Oriental Fruit Moth Trap Captures
2025 Codling Moth Trap Captures
2025 Obliquebanded Leafroller Trap Captures
