Last week, much of the Midwestern and Eastern United States experienced a cold snap to remember, otherwise known as the “Polar Vortex of 2019.” In Western Michigan, temperatures dipped down well into the negative digits, bringing with it plenty of ice and frost galore. In fact, things got so cold in the region that the apples actually turned into ‘ghosts’.

Nope, we’re not kidding…

During this ultra-chilly time, a farmer by the name of Andrew Siestema was braving the elements to prune apples in the small town of Sparta, when he noticed something creepy. He had encountered several crystal-clear apples hanging on the trees.

“I guess it was just cold enough that the ice covering the apple hadn’t melted yet, but it was warm enough that the apple inside turned to complete mush (apples have a lower freezing point than water),” Sietsema told CNN. “And when I pruned a tree it would be shaken in the process, and the mush would slip out of the bottom of the ‘ghost apple.'”
Yep, temperatures were just THAT cold that even the apples decided to call it quits!

“Most apples just fell off, ice and all. But quite a few would leave a cool “ghost apple” behind,” Sietsema said. “Jonagolds are one of my favorite apple varieties, but we’ll call these ‘Jonaghosts.'”

And, that, ladies and gentlemen, is nature at its finest. To see more images of these crystal-clear and oh-so-wondrous ‘ghost apples’, be sure to watch the video below. While we don’t envy the folks of the great State of Michigan (it’s a tad bit too cold there during the winter months for our liking), we would definitely brave the frost to see this phenomenon!

We’d love to hear your thoughts on these amazing ‘ghost apples’. Do you think that they are beautiful? Have you ever seen one in real life? If so, do you have any pictures of your own that you would like to share?

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