Last updated: March 25, 2024
Article
Investigation and Stabilization of Apple Trees at Purchase Knob
Located within Great Smoky Mountains National Park in an otherwise forested landscape, majestic and muscular apple trees stand out on a grassy mountain summit, expressing the stories of former lifeways and livelihoods. At Purchase Knob, more than 30 apple trees have persisted for well over a hundred years, despite decades without human care. They are now recognized by the National Park Service as possibly some of the oldest fruit trees in any park unit and are starting to receive needed attention to sustain their longevity and embodied history.
NPS
![Missie Oakley making apple butter, 1933 A woman uses a long stick to stir a steaming pot over an outdoor fire. A dog sits beside her on one of two camp chairs.](/subjects/culturallandscapes/images/MissieOakley_Apple_Butter1933_1.jpg?maxwidth=650&autorotate=false)
NPS
Landscape History Overview
In 1874, John Love Ferguson acquired “Purchase Mountain” near the border of Tennessee and North Carolina for the cost of $447 and one horse. Ten years later, the Fergusons built a cabin and a barn and eventually cleared the land for agriculture and livestock. While some of the land had been owned by John’s father and there is evidence that an earlier property owner had built a cabin, this was the first record of agricultural use. The apple trees that the Fergusons cultivated grew well in the cool mountain climate. Arable lowlands for crops are hard to come by in Appalachia, but the Fergusons harnessed the advantages of the high elevation with open meadows, raising cows for butter and growing fruit for the local market. The conditions were conducive to both production and storage. Apples grown at high elevations, with hot summer days and cool nights, were known to have the highest quality and flavor. During an interview in 1966, John’s son Hugh Glenn Ferguson, who lived to be 99 years, recalled picking the apples as a boy and bringing them to market in nearby Waynesville – 40 bushels per wagonload.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established in 1934, primarily to protect its forest and natural resources. Over the years, management leaned toward letting the natural processes of ecological succession take hold as the forest recovered from logging and agriculture, and many farms, mills, orchards, and schools slowly disappeared into the largely forested park that we know today. However, the Purchase Knob property remained in private ownership adjacent to the park boundary until the mid-1990s, when the owners donated the property to the NPS. It has since become one of the NPS National Research Centers (Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center), aimed at supporting research and education about science in our national parks.
In collaboration with the NPS Olmstead Center for Landscape Preservation, a Landscape Management Plan for Purchase Knob was produced in 2014, incorporating historical documentation, field investigation, and correspondence with former owners and neighbors. The plan defined some preliminary management goals for the landscape and identified apple trees for protection, some dating to the late 1800s, that are part of the agricultural heritage of the property. The trees are a tangible link to the early history of settlement and agriculture in the area, and their persistence reflects their resilience to frosts, storms, pests, and diseases. These are the only known original apple trees on the North Carolina side of the park, other than a handful in the Cataloochee area. The park has also provided an opportunity for visitors to see a representative heirloom orchard at the Mountain Farm Museum located near the Oconoluftee Visitor Center.
Opening the Landscape Once More
Open meadow areas are increasingly rare now in Southern Appalachia, especially at high elevation. At 5000 feet, the historically open character of Purchase Knob has contributed to the unique qualities of its cultural and natural resources. Today, the Purchase Knob fields are home to several species of concern, such as the Golden-Winged Warbler. Managing the landscape to balance various objectives means caring for the fruit trees and farm remnants, along with the fragile ecosystem and its expansive vistas. It means addressing multiple topics like encroachment, access, research, interpretation, and climate change. And this means continuing to ask more questions.
Stabilization and DNA Analysis
To care for something, it helps to know what you have and what makes it important. In addition to the documentation and planning provided in the 2014 Landscape Management Plan, park staff have recently made strides to identify and care for the apple trees at Purchase Knob. Jesse Webster, a Forester at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, has been a project lead for fruit trees in the park. The resource management team that Webster works with in the park worked together to map the resources associated with the unique habitat and the cultural framework. Then, they develop a stepped plan to once again begin to open up the landscape of this unique place.
NPS
NPS
To sustain good health, fruit trees need access to at least eight hours of sunlight per day during the growing season. In 2022, Webster and the park’s Vegetation Management Crew removed encroaching vegetation around the fruit trees, clearing away colonizing plants to improve access to water, nutrients, light, and space. The work included an early spring removal of brushy undergrowth and felling overhanging and encroaching trees, then mowing. This was followed by a second removal of encroaching tree stump sprouts in the fall.
Plans for future work include removing dead, diseased, and damaged limbs from the fruit trees, pruning for a balanced structure, and potentially cabling weak limbs to prevent breakage.
Collaborating with Washington State University Department of Horticulture in Pullman, Washington, the park also began DNA testing to determine the varieties of some of these old trees, gathering six samples at Purchase Knob for testing. Each variety has unique characteristics, such ripening period, color of skin and flesh, and flavor. Many 19th century varieties have become increasingly rare to non-existent in modern commercial fruit markets.
DNA results can reveal the identity of the specific trees and their place in local, regional, and national orchard history. This can help to answer questions such as:
- Is there more than one tree of the same variety?
- Are any of the trees older varieties that are now rare?
- Did any of the varieties originate in the local area?
- Are any of the existing varieties unique to the national parks?
- Are these varieties early apples, or mid- or late-ripening? How would this have contributed to the Ferguson farm?
Once processed, this new information from the lab will ultimately be incorporated into a national database on apple tree genetics housed with Washington State University. Ultimately, the DNA results will help Webster and his NPS colleagues better fulfill the role of cultural resource stewards in managing a landscape for authenticity.
Even as more information is learned about the apple trees, challenges remain. The fruit trees at the Ferguson farm are found in dispersed orchard remnants that are not in grid formation. Webster is concerned that some scattered fruit trees may be overlooked and inadvertently fall out of care. Additionally, it can be hard to differentiate trees that were planted historically from those that grew up from seed, spread by wildlife a long time ago. To complicate matters, some seedling trees might have had a historical purpose other than fruit production, such as rootstock intended for future grafting or cider-making. For now, Webster says, the NPS is taking a conservative approach, treating all mature fruit trees as potentially significant cultural resources.
A Fall Hike in the Mountains
Growing up in East Tennessee, Webster described a personal resonance with the experience of discovering remnants of former farmsteads while hiking in the Appalachian Mountains. Their fruit trees were a tangible reminder that people had gone before and had made a life in this landscape. Webster hopes that his early memories of discovery will be shared by park visitors as they encounter the Purchase Knob fruit trees. He can imagine visitors to the park hiking through the sunny warmth of a late September day, with the smell of fall leaves hanging in the air, to find the welcome surprise of locating these old apple trees, still on the landscape and surviving for years to come. This is the feeling that propels his efforts to lead the preservation of the Purchase Knob fruit trees.
NPS
Additional Resources
1. This article was updated in March of 2024 to include findings of the apple tree DNA fingerprinting at Purchase Knob, Great Smoky Mountains National Park.