As Vernon’s sons, John and Robert Fowler, took on larger roles in running the farm, more innovations were introduced.
In the early 1970s, a controlled atmosphere (CA) storage facility was added. The CA room provides an optimal storage environment that maintains apple quality over long periods, allowing for year-round distribution.
In the 1980s, Fowler Farms moved to fully dwarfed trees, which increased apple yield even more. The dwarf trees also allowed more sunlight to reach each apple, making for larger, sweeter, more colorful fruit.
The changes only furthered the Fowler philosophy of growing the apple, not the tree.