An apple farmer found something very unusual when when he went to prune his apple trees after a recent winter storm – “ghost apples.” Hanging from the trees were perfectly formed, crystal-clear ice apples.
Andrew Sietsema shot photos of the remarkable ice apples in the Fruit Ridge area of Kent County, near Sparta, Michigan. He posted the pictures on Facebook, and the images quickly went viral. He explained to WOOD TV how they were created, explaining they were the result of the ice storm.
Freezing rain coated the rotting apples, creating a solid icy shell around them. As he pruned the trees, the shaking caused the mushy flesh of some of the frozen apples to pour out the bottom, leaving the ice encasing behind in a perfectly formed apple shape. It’s much like a paper-mache would be constructed.
“Most apples just fell off, ice and all. But quite a few would leave a cool ‘ghost apple’ behind,” Sietsema said.
Siestema manages the orchard and told WOOD TV that the apples were Jonagolds. He says that he plans on calling them “Jona-ghosts” now. He told media outlets that he had never seen the phenomenon before, but guesses it’s happened before.
Reaction from people all over the globe has been one of wonderment. “The wonders of nature never cease to amaze! Thank you for amazing information.” wrote one person.
“Proof that life on this planet can be amazing still,” said another.
One thing for sure, they are simply beautiful to look at.
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