Freezing rain creates 'ghost apples' in Michigan orchard

DETROIT – Freezing rain left otherworldly looking "ghost apples" dangling from some trees in west Michigan this week, according to a TV station report.

The glass-like orbs were created when the rain created solid icy shells around rotten apples in the Fruit Ridge area of Kent County, Michigan, said Andrew Sietsema, who snapped pictures of them Wednesday.  

Sietsema said when he was pruning the trees, many of the frozen apples fell entirely off, WOOD-TV reported. But sometimes, just the rotten mush slid out. 

"As I pruned the trees the melted, rotten apples would be shaken and slip out of the bottom where it didn’t get covered in ice," Sietsema wrote on Facebook. 

According to WOOD-TV,  Sietsema said he's particularly fond of the Jonagold variety, "but we'll call these Jonaghosts."

Fruit Ridge is a premier fruit-growing region northwest of Grand Rapids, Michigan. 

"The glaciers of long ago left behind gently rolling slopes. The deposits were fertile clay loam soils with excellent moisture holding qualities that provided great soil and terrain for the growing of premium fruits, vegetables and the raising of livestock, including buffalo," according to a post on fruitridgemarket.com.

Follow Ann Zaniewski on Twitter: @AnnZaniewski