$1.7M in aid helpful, but won't cover all the losses from Fiona, apple growers say

In the Belvedere Orchard near Brookfield, P.E.I., nothing appears out of place. The rows of apple trees are sprinkled with fruits ready for this year's U-pick. 

What you don't see are the 2,300 other trees lost after post-tropical storm Fiona blew through more than a year ago. 

"We had some that were missing that we never found," said the orchard's owner, Teo Herweijer, standing beside a pile of branches in an empty plot.

"It was a devastating site."

Herweijer said he left many of the trees alone for about three to four weeks to "see if there was any life in them." 

"After four weeks we start pulling them up because we know it wasn't going to be good."

The P.E.I. Tree Fruit Growers Association says about 100,000 apple trees alone were lost in the storm. It estimates the damages could cost as much as $10 million. 

It was a massive setback for the industry, leaving growers with costly repairs and little produce to sell. 

"It was pretty, pretty emotionally devastating," said association president Geoff Boyle, who lost 3,200 trees that night. "Wherever there was a weak spot, Fiona exposed the weak spot."

The federal and provincial governments have promised support for the tree fruit industry. On Tuesday, $1.7 million was announced for eligible growers impacted by the storm. 

The money can be used for areas such as replacing or straightening damaged trees or trellises and helping with extra labour costs from cleanup or mulching ground fruit.

Growers say it may not be enough, but they don't want to upset the apple cart. 

"It's a double-edged sword because you turn around and you say, well, that's inadequate, you're crying sour grapes," Boyle said. 

"Obviously you're thankful for any amount of support that you get. But if we're talking about what Fiona and what disaster relief looks like compared to the losses, it seems a little bit small."