The Allred Legacy
It must be in the genes, this "love of growing things." Or is it passed from one generation to another because of a loving example seen by those who came later? Whatever the reason, there has been and continues to be a love of the soil, of things that grow in it and are harvested from it in the family of Rey and Mary Carol Allred.
Rey grew up on the farm his father and grandfather established in 1926 on University Avenue in Provo. The original barn built in 1893 still exists today as a retail outlet for their peaches, necatrines, apples, apple juice and dried cherries.
In 1957 Rey, Mary Carol and Rey's father, Bliss, purchased a farm in Payson and began to plant peaches, apples, sweet and tart cherries. That year Rey graduated from BYU with a degree in horticulture and spent his time fulfilling his dream of growing the best fruit possible.
If Rey had time and the inclination to have had a hobby, it would have been farming and spending time with people in the fruit industry. He was always looking for better ways to do things: new varieties to plant, new rootstocks for plantings, new machinery to plant, spray, transport, prune and harvest the fruit, new spacings for trees, new trellis systems to train the trees, new irrigations systems and anything else that he could think of. In short, he had never stopped learning how to do his job better. He never stopped teaching those around him what he had learned, and his excitement and enthusiasm continue to inspire those who knew and loved him.
Rey and his wife, Mary Carol have passed on this "love of growing things" to their children and grandchildren and they are finding that same enjoyment in working with the Creator to beautify and make productive this earth we live on.