Apples

Belle De Boskoop apple tree originated from seed in 1856 in the nursery of the Ottlander family in Boskoop, Holland. The Belle de Boskoop apple is a large greenish-yellow fruit with rough skin and dark red blush on exposed fruits. Crisp, tangy, highly aromatic flesh that sweetens in storage or left hanging late on tree.

Discovered on property of O. Marn of Waiwhero, Upper Moutere, Nelson, New Zealand. Thought to be a Lady Hamilton seedling. Introduced and grown commercially in 1952 by William Brothers’ Braeburn Orchards. Smooth texture and sweet “old-fashioned” apple flavor.

The Claygate Pearmain apple tree was discovered at Claygate, Surrey in England in a hedge by John Braddick in 1821.  He brought it to the attention of the Royal Horticultural Society and it went on to become a very popular eating apple in Victorian times.

D’arcy Spice apple tree originated a garden at Tolleshunt D’arcy, Essex in 1785. Great flavor in a plain package. The D’arcy Spice apple has a yellow-green skin, flushed with russet patches surrounding a fine, firm crisp flesh with subtle spicy ‘nutmeg’ flavor. Russet aficionados often enjoy the texture of D’arcy Spice apples. One of the favorites at our apple tastings a few years back.

Originated in Esopus, Ulster County, NY around 1800. A bright red apple with yellow dots.

NY109, known colloquially as the Firecracker Apple, is a 2020 Cornell University Apple Breeding Problem release. The apple is smaller than a baseball and is very elongated. It is traditionally used for fresh eating, baking, but is excellent in cider.

The Fireside apple tree originates from Minnesota where it has many admirers. The Fireside apple was developed in the early 1940’s when the country listened to Roosevelts’ “Fireside Chats” which likely beget its name. This large apple is extremely hardy. The crisp, juicy, sweet, greenish-white flesh is not flat or mealy.

Of unknown origin, the apple is yellow with bronze highlights, from the older family of apples. Called the “champagne of old-time cider apples.” Crisp with yellow flesh, keeps well.

This dessert-apple tree is disease-resistant to apple scab and powdery mildew. Fruit has a tart, tangy flavor that sweetens with age. Excellent fresh or in pies and crisps. Introduced circa 1993. Ripens in mid-to-late October.

Antique variety, originates from West Virginia, circa 1830. Thought to be a parent of Golden Delicious.  Fruit has a bright yellow skin when ripe and a crisp, sweet flesh with a smooth, creamy texture. Ideal for fresh-eating and also excellent for juice, cider, and sauce.

The Harrison cider apple is one of the most famous 18th-century American cider apples, primarily used for the production of apple cider. Grown in New Jersey before and after the American Revolution, it fell out of favor by 20th century. The Harrison cider apple was considered lost until it was recovered in Livingston, New Jersey at an old cider mill in September 1976.

Honeygold is a cross between Golden Delicious and Haralson. A mid-late season apple with medium to large yellow fruit and creamy white flesh.

Karmijn de Sonnaville was raised by Piet de Sonnaville, an apple enthusiast who had prevoiusly worked at the well-respected horticultural research school of the University of Wageningen in the Netherlands.  Starting in 1949 he created numerous crosses, primarily using Cox and Jonathan, along with many others.

Karmijn de Sonnaville is his most well-known creation, a Cox-style variety, but with a distinctly more pronounced aromatic flavor.

Discovered by Ben Frost of Durham, Arkansas who discovered the King David apple along a fence row in the late 1800’s. King David apple tree is a versatile fruit for cider, pies, sauce, and eating.

The Kingston Black, also known as Black Taunton, is a cultivar of apple originating from the United Kingdom and used in making cider. The name of the cultivar comes from the apples’ dark red or purplish skin, though despite the name, the fruit does not have a black hue.

Kingston Black is capable of making a distinctive single-variety cider, and its value in cidermaking meant that by the early 19th century it became more well known. By 1950 the Long Ashton Research Station referred to it as “more widely grown than any other cider apple” in the West of England.

The Lady is a historic apple cultivar originating in Brittany, France in at least 1628. The cultivar has gained a variety of known names in English, and is commonly referred to as Api or the Lady Apple.  A common claim is that the apple originates at the times of the Roman empire as the “Appian apple” described by Pliny the Elder in the first century.

The apples are typically small like a large crabapple and have a sweet tart taste.

Nonpareil is one of the oldest of all apple varieties.  The Victorian pomologist Robert Hogg believed it came from France to England in the 16th century, and noted that its aromatic qualities were apparently better appreciated in England than in the land of its birth.  Hogg noted that Nonpareil grew best in the south of England (closest to France), and the flavour was less successful when grown in the north of England.

Nonpareil belongs to a small group of apples which have the flavour of pear-drops.  This flavour component is fairly unusual, but is also found in one of Nonpareil’s probable descendants, Ashmead’s Kernel.

Orleans Reinette apple tree was first described in France around 1776.  Today it’s grown throughout Europe but remains elusive. The Orleans Reinette apple is a cinnamon russet/red flush fruit with a undercoat of glowing gold ” suggesting  that if Rembrandt had painted a fruit piece he would have chosen this apple.   Good for all uses from fresh eating to cider and baking.

The first Pitmaston Pineapple apple tree was bred in the 1780’s by a Mr White, an employee of Lord Foley of Witley, who sold the breed to a nursery called Williams of Pitmaston. An old, very distinctive dessert variety producing small golden apples that are honey sweet and nutty, yet also sharp and some say a distinct hint of pineapple.

Thought to be of Canadian origin around 1830. Hardy apple with grey russeting.

One of the oldest named varieties, first grown in Roxbury, MA around 1649. A greenish gold fruit overlaid with brown. One of a group of Russets named because of their brown “leather” skin. Crisp with a sweet yellow flesh. Keeps well.

Stayman is a high-quality dessert apple. Tree yields large, firm, wine-spicy fruit with a deep red color. Fruit makes a gorgeous addition to fruit bowls and gift baskets. Stores well.

First raised by Dr Stayman of Leavenworth, Kansas, USA in the 1860s.  The variety gained some commercial popularity in the USA, having been promoted by the famous Stark Brothers Nursery, primarily for its culinary value.

Although originating in Kansas, it is often associated with Virginia, where it is still quite widely grown in pick-your-own orchards.  It is believed to be a seedling of Winesap and is often known as Stayman’s Winesap.

Suncrisp apples were developed by Dr. Fred Hough and Catherine Bailey at the Rutgers Horticultural Research Farm in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The variety was created from a cross between cortland and cox’s orange pippin apples, known as NJ303955, and the resulting apple from this cross was bred with golden delicious in 1963.

Suncrisp apples have high sugar and acidity, creating a sharp, subtly sweet, and tart flavor with floral nuances and notes of pear and honey.

Thought to have originated in New Jersey and described in 1817 as an important NJ cider apple. Planted primarily in southern states (especially Virginia). Firm, yellowish flesh with a powerful sweet-sour contrast, and spicy wine-like flavor.

Originated on the farm of David Flory near Adamsboro, IN in 1876. A yellow apple with pinkish blush and wax-like appearance. Distinctly aromatic and mild in flavor. (Voted the most beautiful apple by the Leadbeater family.)