| Sources |
- [S78] Atchley Funeral Home Records, Volume I, 1930-1954, Larry D. Fox, (Smoky Mountain Historical Society), 79, 9 Dec 1985.
Johnie Elijah Manning obituary
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 23 Aug 2004.
By daylight of virtually every day, 69-year-old Lawrence Manning is out of the house and into his "hiding place."
No, the Caton's Chapel area man is not sitting in a dark basement or quivering under a bed somewhere.
"This is my hiding place," said Manning, as he stood with his arms outstretched, grinning from ear to ear atop a knoll in one of the quietest, prettiest and most private orchards in Sevier County.
Striding from one tree to another, Manning plucks an apple here and an apple there. Polishing each on the sleeve of his shirt, he holds them aloft so we can admire their color and form, then says, laughing, "Look at that - beautiful."
There is no doubting that the orchard is the culmination of a dream for a man with seemingly unlimited energy and enthusiasm. Manning said he began planning his orchard after seeing his brother-in-law's enormous apple orchard in the arid, fertile and very flat Wenatchee Valley of Washington State.
While planting anything on the hills of East Tennessee is more of a challenge, Manning was undaunted, and in 1981, after conferring with experts at The University of Tennessee, he planted about 1,000 trees on six acres.
Though at the time he was not yet retired from Alcoa, Manning tenderly nursed the trees along for five years until he started getting apples from them in 1986. The very next year, Manning had so many apples coming on that he bought large crate-like bins for transporting the apples and began selling an average of 3,000 bushels a year to the Apple Barn in Sevierville.
Prior to retiring in 1992, Manning managed to do all the work associated with the orchard with the occasional help of only a couple of friends.
Now that Manning has more time, he delights in the hours he spends from daylight to dark or later, spraying the trees, picking the apples, mowing between the rows in summer, and pruning the trees in winter. Of course, his 20 head of cattle also require his attention, especially in summer when he makes hay for them or mows the steep hillside pasture. He also grows a little tobacco and helps a couple of neighbors who also have tobacco crops.
Then there are the bees - you've got to have bees to pollinate the apple trees, and with 30 beehives, the natural byproduct is honey, and lots of it. Getting the honey ready to sell through several local businesses is a job Manning said he usually reserves for his "spare time after dark."
At this time of year, Manning is picking Prime Gold and Red Delicious apples, and in a few weeks his energy will be devoted to picking Golden Delicious, Rome and Winesap apples, according to Manning.
"Most of my apples go to the Apple Barn," said Manning, adding that he is the only supplier of apples for the restaurant, although owners of the Apple Barn do grow and sell some of their own apples.
"The good ones are sold fresh, and the others go into making juice and cider. You ought to go see their operation - it's absolutely spotless, and it's the neatest thing you've ever seen," said Manning.
But Manning does not limit his apple sales to the Apple Barn; he also sells them to those who find their way to his Wiley Noland Road home. To find the Mannings' home, just look for the sign that says "Apples."
* cgrimm@themountainpress.com
Lawrence Appleseed Caton's Chapel man talks about apples, honey and his 'hiding place'
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Abt 1935 - (~ 89 years)
, d. 9 Dec 1985 (Age 84 years) 