Ralph Broetje is converting part of his orchard to organic. Ralph Broetje’s interest in new apple varieties has never waned. He was among the first Washington growers to plant Granny Smith and, by 1990, was producing almost a quarter of ­Washington State’s Granny Smith crop, as well as most of the state’s Galas. Broetje now has more than 5,000 acres of apples at his Prescott ranch on the Snake River in Washington, plus 500 acres to the north at Benton City, and a 675-acre organic orchard further south at Wallula. Most of his recent plantings are on vertical trellis systems, […]