The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

WAITSBURG – Renowned “apple detective” David Benscoter will be in Waitsburg on Sept. 30 to visit with locals at a dinner fundraiser and to give a lecture about his lost apple discoveries.

Waitsburg Tree Committee and city council member, Kate Hockersmith, read an article about Benscoter, who has discovered several varieties of lost apples, mostly in the Steptoe Butte area, and approached him about visiting Waitsburg. It turns out, Benscoter already had interest in coming to the area and jumped at the opportunity.

Hockersmith was pleased to discover how many people were interested in the project once word of Benscoter’s visit got out. Benscoter’s visit will be hosted by the newly formed Waitsburg Urban Forestry Project, organized under the umbrella of the Rural Youth Enrichment Services nonprofit organization, and the Waitsburg Garden Club.

After doing some preliminary research, Benscoter is particularly interested in learning more about the Columbian Orchards and Nursery, located near Waitsburg in the late 1800’s, as well as the Taggard and Dickinson Orchards.

His visit will kick off Sat. Sept. 30 with a dinner and silent auction fundraiser at Ten Ton Press on Waitsburg’s Main Street at 5 p.m. with musical entertainment by local bluegrass band Switchgrass Delta. Donations and auction items will help offset the cost of Benscoter’s travel expenses. A lecture will follow at the Lions Club Building at the Waitsburg Fairgrounds at 6:30 p.m. The lecture is free and open to the public.

During his time here, Benscoter will also visit heritage trees in the area.

“We may have some interesting Waitsburg apple stories come out of this. I’ve been hearing all sorts of tales,” Hockersmith said.