Apple Blossom Festival underway in Annapolis Valley

More than 50,000 people are expected to line the streets of Kentville, N.S., Saturday for the annual Apple Blossom parade.

The Apple Blossom Festival kicked off on Wednesday in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley, marking the start of the tourist season in the region.

“People come to the valley, they’ll come in on the Thursday and the Friday and they’ll stay the whole weekend, and it’s a huge economic boost,” said Apple Blossom Festival president Gary Long.

Just last week, organizers were concerned there may not be any apple blossoms out in time for the festival. But the blossoms came out just in time.

“We’ve had a few warm days that really made things pop,” Long said.

On Friday, a bronze statue of Dr. Charles Eaves was unveiled beside the Town of Kentville sign, just across the street from the federal research station where Eaves began working in 1934. It was commissioned by Eaves’s son and created by artist Ruth Abernethy.

“Initially we just dubbed the project ‘Dr. Apple,’ for the sake of having a sort of catch phrase, the working title,” Abernethy said. “But in fact even Charles Eaves sounds a bit formal. I mean, this was Charlie, and everybody adored him.”

“He was instrumental in establishing the first controlled atmosphere storage facility in North America, actually,” said researcher Charles Furey.

In many ways, Furey is continuing the work of pioneering scientists like Eaves.

“I study the storage of fresh fruits and vegetables and develop technologies to improve their quality and maintain their storage life,” Furey said.

The festival continues until Sunday.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Sarah Ritchie