Almost Apple Time!

The best apples of the season are upon us. The Mid-season!
I will likely not write up any reviews of apples this year unless there is an apple locally that intrigues me, so there will be a possibility. I’ve already covered a lot of our local gems here.

Here are some pictures from my yard, Kidd’s Orange Red and Jonamac are ripe and ready.

Pawpaws are growing but not much, A foot of growth again this year.

The frankencrab might have some apples next year, and the M7 sprout is doing very well, will be grafted as Pomme Gris in the spring.

All in all a great year, even though we did suffer some pea sized hail damage that turned out to be merely cosmetic in nature.

Golden Russet – Apple Review

About –  Mysterious history. Said to be a seedling of English Russet, a long lost european russet. Discovered in the 1700’s. What IS Golden Russet? Its hard to say, There are so many confusing stories about Golden Russet, American Golden Russet, English Golden Russet, English Russet, Bullock. Confused yet? If not, read this, as noted from an Ohio AG meeting in the 1880s:

Even back in the 1880’s when apple growing was much more personal, we still didnt know how to distinguish these russets all that well.

Beech in Apples of New York offers some distinctions between English and Golden Russet.

Shape – Medium sized, round, relatively even shaped, flattened on both top and bottom to give a fat barrel appearance.
Skin –  Golden, finely grained russet. Orange glow on the sun side. Feel of the skin is potato like. The skin will cause the taste buds on your tongue to rise due to the roughness. Slight greenness near the stem. Lenticels yellowish, mixed with the russet color, more prominent when not ripe.
Flesh – Yellow, finely grained, dense. Breaking, juicy enough, crunchy. Juice is grainy. has texture. Oxidizes quickly.
Taste – Honey & pear flavors mixed with a dash of lemon, almond, and a smooth hint of fine grained cane sugar. Sweet, very sweet, with some acidity but not tart. Flavors are not strong, but not weak. Rich. Try eating 2, I dare you.

Bottom line: THE apple for me. I’ve said it many times to growers and potential pickers, Golden Russet is the best kept secret in apple cultivation. The general population does not gravitate to it due to its non-red/green appearance, but from a beauty perspective, it certainly ranks up there. Very dense apple, weighty, similar in weight to a baseball. Soluble sugar contents rank as one of the highest at 21%. Can make a 10% ABV cider that borders on wine. Try mixing the juice of a few of these into an ordinary container of 1/2 gallon cider and be prepared to experience some of the richest cider you’ve ever tasted.

Variety Note: Tip bearer, very vigorous, crops light. One high density orchard has a row of these trees with fireblight. Another orchard has one, very large, majestic, free standing tree that is free of this problem. These are relatively minor issues and are not a justification for demerit. Apples are exceptional keepers, and will store in a high humidity environment at 34 degrees for 6 months. Sugars will develop more and become richer with time.
Why dont I grow it? Light bearing, and I cant have a big tree with only 20-50 apples on it in a small yard. Specimen picked October 14th from Lindsey’s Idyllwood Orchards. Samscott in Kinderhook NY has a long row of these as well.

Fresh eating rating: 10/10 – King of Kings. I have yet to find an apple to meet or surpass this one. This includes the perennial Monticello winner, Ashmead’s Kernel. Its richness is merely a compliment to its perfect combination of flavors and texture. Best.

Culinary rating: 8/10 – Cooks very well, holds its shape, stays crunchy to add texture to pie filling. Will add natural sugar in place of processed sugars. Rich.

Winter Banana – Apple Review

About –  Discovered in Indiana during the mid to late 1800’s.

Shape – Heart shaped, delicious like. Large sized apple, not as large as the largest available.
Skin –  Thin, waxy, almost greasy. Shines well, Strawberry red on yellow. Very attractive.
Flesh – Yellow, not white. Fairly dense in comparison to most other apples. Crunchy. Oxidizes at an average pace, within 10 minutes. Chewy.
Taste – I dont taste banana. Flavor is very simple, slight sweetness, slight tart, and then nothing. Woody undertone adds to the odd aftertaste. Juice is lightly grainy. “Weak sauce”. Its an apple without an identity.

Bottom line: I was expecting more, but from internet anecdotes, I should have expected less. Its popularity surely lies with its name rather than what it has to offer. Its true name should be Enigma.

Variety Note: This tree produces an abundance of pollen, and is a good pollinator.

Fresh eating rating: 3/10 – Its missing a lot in terms of flavor, but it does have good texture. With a name like Winter Banana I was expecting something more than this. Considering this variety has been around for close to 150 years now I thought there would be a lot more going for it. The name alone attracts attention at the orchard. Im glad I only picked 5 of them, these seem to be a waste of time.

Culinary rating: N/A – Havent had a chance yet, we just got these in yesterday.

Akane – Apple Review

About –  Cross between Worcester Pearmain & Jonathan. Originated in Japan in the 1930s.

Shape – Smaller side of medium apple. Flattened, almost heart shaped. Flat bottomed and uniformly round.
Skin –  Red, sometimes crimson in places, marked with a netter russet, usually close to the stem. Some greens in with the russet. Snappy, similar to MacIntosh, oddly enough.
Flesh – Crunchy, off-white to yellow tinge. Does not oxidize quickly. Not very dense, easy to eat.
Taste – “Fruit punch!” Cristin says to me, eating her first one. I can definitely taste that connection, there are some woody undertones to it. Generally sweet, pretty juicy. I like the flavor, but its a very fleeting momentary flavor. You bite into it, POW, fruity, juicy, then its gone.

Bottom line: Cristin loves them, its one of her all around favorites for eating. Its just not my thing really. Its not overly complex and its a very simple, easily relate-able flavor. Her tastes and opinions seem to line up with the general public more than mine. It does some things really well. Its a summer apple, but we find the flavor at its best when picked late September here in NY. It doesnt keep for more than a month. Its a GOOD apple, but when compared to others, all season round, merely average.

Variety Note: Its likely this variety never made it off the ground due to the russeting and its soft nature. One of the few Japanese born varieties than does not feature a Japanese apple variety as a parent. Not as popular in the USA as OrangePippin.com implies.

Fresh eating rating: 5/10 – Average, but may appeal to those that appreciate a simply, juicy, sweet apple.

Culinary rating: 2/10 – Poor, falls apart, light, does not add much of anything.

Jonathan – Apple Review

About –  Some sketchiness around where this apple came from, but the likely story is, its closely related to Esopus Spitzenburg. Discovered in Woodstock, New York, 1826.

Shape – Round, slightly lumpy, mostly uniform. Medium in size. Leans on the plate.
Skin –  Crimson red, most specimens are 95% red with slight yellows where the sun isnt. Skin smells of sweet, fruity, grassiness. Skin juices stain the plate.
Flesh – Breaking, crumbly, yellow, crunchy, denser than most. Slight oxidation toward the core. It has a chew to it with the skin.
Taste – Wonderfully aromatic, slightly sweetness, more tart, but not a tartness of regret, but a tartness that adds to the complexity. Spiciness and warmth, great compliment to cheddar and cheeses. I think it tastes best only slightly cool.

Bottom line: This is grandpa’s apple. It takes us back to a simpler day. It has many of the same qualities in terms of flavor as Esopus Spitzenburg, but with more sweetness. Its hard to do a side by side without the 2 in front of you, in season, but if you were to ask me which one I prefer, I’d prefer Jonathan.  This is an apple I’d choose to grow if I started an orchard. The only hard knock on it is Jonathan Spot. Im not sure why I dont eat more of them. They’re really good, all around.

Variety Note: Tree has a weeping habit to it, and my Jonamac shows it as Jonathan is one of its parents. In the orchard I noticed the same Up-Down-Up nature with the branches. Its an attractive tree for sure. Its shape reminds me of an old woman, frail. Beautifully wispy.

Fresh eating rating: 8/10 – A classic that gets very little respect in today’s apple markets. Its wonderful in terms of flavor, texture. The package is perfectly sized, shaped, and colored. I would take one of these over a MacIntosh every day of the week, but doesnt quite live up to the Jonamac in terms of flavor, but it does do texture and density better.

Culinary rating: 7/10 – Very good, dense enough to hold its shape in baked goods, and adds spicy complexity to pies mixed with cookers.

SnowSweet – Apple Review

About –  Hybrid of Sharon and Connell Red, bred for cold hardiness and utility.

Shape – Round, somewhat flattened. Sits well, slightly lopsided. Size varies greatly between specimens. 
Skin –  Snappy, similar to MacIntosh class apples. Relatively tasteless. Red on the sun side, green on the shaded side.
Flesh – Not snow white as its claimed, off white toward yellow, and it does oxidize a bit, quickly then stops. Density similar to Honeycrisp, does not have the same large grained pockets of crunchiness. Medium grain, medium density.
Taste – Sweet, only slightly tart. Refreshing. Fairly juicy. Faintness of vineyard green wine grapes. Ever had a Grapple? Very similar to that but without the artificial flavors and preservatives. 

Bottom line: Good fresh eater, I would say a solid apple, attractive on the tree. Not something I would personally grow, but does have market potential considering its makeup. It represents a lot of the same qualities that Honeycrisp does but a bit more interesting flavor. I loathe Honeycrisp for what it represents. Texture over flavor. 

Variety Note: This is from my parents tree, the tree is nicely formed, average vigor and upward spreading. Bears heavy, needs thinning. Diploid. Spray required. Harvest is late September. 

Fresh eating rating: 6/10 – Average, it has some nice redeeming qualities, but its just not my kind of apple. Other simply sweet apples do it better, consider Shizuka for sweet delight. 

Culinary rating: N/A – Not tested, but I should have a report from my parents sometime. 

Our first apples

We picked our first apples on September 20th.

On the left, Jonamac, and on the right Kidd’s Orange Red.
Some slight flyspeck and Sooty Blotch just adds character.

We tasted the Jonamac, and had some Aged Cheddar with it, delicious.

Kidd’s Orange Red is aging to pefection in the cold storage unit.

-Eric

Ginger Gold – Apple Review

Its review season again! We’ll start with one of our favorite early apples.

About –  Found as a chance seedling in Virginia. Likely parents are Golden Delicious and Newtown Pippin. Found in 1969 after Hurricane Camille.

Shape – Slightly lopsided, medium size. Uniform, some are larger on top, round.
Skin –  Green and yellow blended colors, very ripe specimens have orange flushes.
Flesh – A more dense, less soft Golden Delicious, but over time does soften to a Golden Delicious consistency, even in cold, high humidity storage.
Taste – Its fresh, juicy, crispy, and reminiscent of cooler summer nights.  Slightly sweet, slighty tart and the flavor lingers, unlike other early apples. Flavors are light, and include sweet lemon and dusted sugar. Cristin describes it as a lemonade and apple juice flavor.

Bottom line: This is not your typical early season, soft apple, with only flashes of flavor. This is a pretty full bodied apple compared to most of the early season offerings. Ginger Gold is one of our favorites early in the season, and it keeps reasonably well. Its been 3 weeks since we picked them and they are starting to break down a little bit now, but not much. If you loathe the softness of Golden Delicious, but enjoy the sweetness and want a little more tart experience, this is the apple to try. I think everyone should at least give this one a shot, and it really shines over the “Early Macs”, and offers more complexity in flavor over Zestar! and Paula Red. Ginger Gold is in a class of its own for first early apples, competes with Gala in flavor.

Variety Note: Still an early apple, so it has its limits. You cant expect high quality flavor for over a month off the tree. 

Fresh eating rating: 7/10 – If I were judging only early season apples it would be a solid 9 in my opinion. Fresh, bright, lemony pop, with sweetness. Refreshing

Culinary rating: 6/10 – Holds its shape, brightens the flavor of other apples, but you still cannot expect a richness normally associated with mid season apples, and classic cookers.

August Update – Surprise!

July came and went so fast, but in that time my yard had quite the surprise. I was out walking around the yard, and I stepped on some stiff bristles in the grass. 15 feet from the Frankencrab low and behold…

Rootsuckers from the Frankencrab, likely M7 rootstock.
Over the past couple of weeks I’ve debated what to do with it. Thoughts have ranged from Cristin telling me we dont need a 5th tree to a bunch of different varieties and even another multigraft tree.

Initially I thought we’re going to have enough apples for us and some to share with the family easy with 4 half standards and a dwarf tree. So with that thought I was instantly thinking winter keeping apple, mulling Newtown Pippin. Thats one of the few apples I know of that keeps well into spring with 33 degree cold storage. I dismissed it after about a week because our growing season up here in Saratoga county is borderline at best for an apple harvest into November. Our first killing freeze averages around first week in November, and while Newtown Pippin is a great keeper, the green ones I’ve purchased from Samascott Orchards a hour south of here really werent all that good, even into winter and early spring out of cold storage.

Then I started thinking about Ashmead’s Kernel, a fantastic apple, but a shy bearer, and to make matters worse its a Triploid, meaning the pollen isnt useful for other apple varieties. So I’ve scrapped that idea. Then I thought about other russets, Golden Russet, which has bug and fireblight issues, St. Edmund’s Russet, which is early in the year and wont keep all that well, then Egremont Russet with its small fruit and bitter pit issues, Roxbury Russet, another Triploid. Im starting to get aggravated, I cant find a variety that keeps but doesnt harvest too late and has useful pollen.

Onto posting on GardenWeb and bouncing ideas back and forth with the members there. scottfsmith recommended a few including Swayzie and Pomme Gris. A few others chimed in and then I thought to myself, why not do it the analytic way with the USDA GRIN database?

I love Golden Russet, if I were to pick 1 russet to grow it would be that one, but its a tip bearer which isnt all that productive, and too vigorous for M7. Also, its really a bug magnet, and not in a good way. So I looked at Golden Russet’s soluble solids rating on the database and its a remarkable 21%. This helps the apples store well, taste great with complex sugars after the apple has matured on the tree and stored after picking.

I punched in the following, using the long form query page:

Soluble Solids greater than 20%
Harvest season at least mid october
Fruit weight greater than 100 grams
Diploid only

This is what came up:

Out of all of the apples in the GRIN database the only one that comes close to Golden Russet in measureables is Ross Nonpareil. So I did some reading about it online from here and here. Apparently it does keep well and harvests mid season. Its not a true russet though.

I went back and did some more number punching onto the GRIN Database, long form.

Fruit Russet equal to 100%
Harvest Season at least mid-October
Fruit Weight greater than 100 grams
Diploid only

Results:

My blogging buddy Adam did a review on this apple here and a comparison with Ashmead’s Kernel here. It did well, even if it doesnt compare to Ashmeads in overall depth and breadth im comfortable with it if its productive and easier to grow without the thin fruit years Ashmead’s Kernel is known for. This should keep well into winter and be usable in just about anything. Plenty of soluble solids (sugar), close to Ashmead’s Kernel.

Additional references: Here and here and here and an entry in Apples of New York

So thats that, im putting my faith in the research of Cornell University to select the apple varieties for me. All I needed to do is specify exactly what im looking for and pick from the results. I’ve got 2 here and what im going to do is, graft Pomme Gris onto the rootstock first, and then graft Ross Nonpareil again on the leader after about 8-10 feet of growth,  maybe 1 season’s worth, but likely 2 for thick growth to graft to. I’ll have a permanent 2 in 1 tree that does not need additional grafting. It will be self sustaining with 2 diploids that blossom close in time and neither have big disease red flags.

Additional pictures from the yard:

Jonamac, ripening. Not happy with the shade. This tree may need to be moved.

Kidd’s Orange Red, ripening in the sun.

Orleans Reinette, I see terminal buds and fruit spurs. Fruit next year?

This Frankencrab is just a beast, more grafting of same varieties in the spring.

July Update

This post has been a long time coming, but I will update on what I’ve been up to thru the offseason so far.

Well, the grafting went reasonably well. Grafting was done first week in April. I did it so early because with cleft grafting you take a chance with the cambium layer separating from the rest of the branch if you wait too long in the season to split it. The cambium becomes moist and loose later in the season, into May.

What did I graft?

Belle de Boskoop – From the Netherlands, known for its use in strudel and its prolonged keeping ability. I had these last year, and they kept for a very long time, probably would have made it to May. Large, dense, sour eating off the tree but well balanced when used after the new year. Vigorous tree, grafted on the north side of the tree where it can be allowed to consume a large amount of space without hindering other varieties. About 3 feet of thick growth in 3 months. Also grafted as a new central leader into a injury callous on June 6th, its put on about 6″ of growth in a month, also getting thicker.

Photo: Both grafts, the giant scaffold graft on the right, and you can see the injury callous graft on the left, wrapped in green plastic tape.

Calville Blanc d’Hiver – Classic French cooker, Cristin loves it and is always looking forward to using these each year. I call these champagne effervescence. Very different apple, ugly in appearance but amazing as a cooker. More vigor than I anticipated.

Reine des Reinettes – Another heirloom French variety. This one is more of an all purpose apple. Keeps reasonably well, nice sweet/tart balance, juicy. Mid Season. Seems to be of moderate vigor, slightly behind Calville Blanc and Belle de Boskoop.

Freyberg – The wildcard. Never have had this one, but I’ve had its siblings (Kidd’s Orange Red) and its parents (Golden Delicious & Cox’s Orange Pippin). Its a desert apple said to taste almost tropical in nature. Mid season, vigor seems to be moderate.

Notes on grafting:

A few lessons learned.

1. I wish I had waited a couple more weeks to graft, I dont think it would have hurt to wait until mid to late april to graft. The tree started to wake up early April, and I got anxious, so I grafted in 25 degree weather early in the morning. The grafts really didnt wake up until first week in May, so there is a window there for sure. I grafted Belle de Boskoop as the new central leader June 6th and within 5 days a saw growth, so in the future i’ll wait until at least 3rd week in April to graft.

2. Make sure the scion wedges are shaped with a longer taper. I lost a couple of grafts because I was more concerned with the wood drying out than doing a good job. I lost a 2nd Freyberg graft and a 2nd Reine des Reinettes graft because of sloppy work.

3. When inserting the wood at an angle, start in the rind and angle the scion inward. This is a lesson from last year when I attempted 1 Liberty graft for fun and it didnt work out because I aligned the wood on the outside edge of a large scaffold. It never had a chance from day 1 because the cambium layers didnt match up.

4. Do a good job, but dont meddle. Get the grafts done to the best of your ability but dont harp on it being perfect. I had an AWFUL practice graft on June 6th take, and I ripped it off today because its competing with the new central leader graft. It was sloppy, but it still took. The key is cambium contact, it doesnt seem like it matters how big the contact point is, the tree heals over it and does the rest.

5. Take off wraps after you see the wrapping material get tight. As Stephen Hayes says about when to take the wraps off: “If you dont wait long enough, you’ll be sorry, and if you wait too long… you’ll be sorry.” For me, 8 weeks seemed appropriate. I removed the wraps on those grafts and all is well.

6. Expensive grafting materials arent necessary to graft. I used a razor bladed utility knife with a fresh CLEAN blade to shape my scions with 1 smooth pulling cut. I heard from somewhere “Remember we’re not whittling a toy boat, one smooth pull”. Trowbridge grafting wax and a roll of Parafilm. 1/2″ green plastic nursery tape. A long tapered flat head screw driver for keeping the clefts open for grafting. Opinel #10 to split large wood. I didnt even use my #6, but I will probably use that as a clean up knife for stock growths. Last but not least, Rubbing Alcohol to keep my tools sanitary and clean between cuts.

7. I prefer bark grafts now. After going in with a cleft graft is easy mentality, I think I prefer bark or rind grafts because the cambium contact is so easy to make. I did a horrible job on one up in the tree, and it still amazingly took. I cant say the same for the cleft because the contact point has to be crossed at a small spot and your tapering of the scion has to be dead on. Bark or rind grafts have to be done when the cambium is wet and active, likely mid May.

Musings on future grafts.

Cristin’s gonna kill me most likely but I am considering a 5th and final variety to graft to the Frankencrab called Golden Nugget. I love Golden Russet, and I really cant have that apple here. Im avoiding a fireblight and bug magnet, and that apple is certainly one of them. Its an early season variety ready early September, and it would kick off our harvest season about 2 weeks before Jonamac. Its a Cox’s Orange Pippin and Golden Russet cross. Montgomery Place Orchards has it. I’ll be looking for it there in September to try, then I’ll make a decision.

Current tree updates:

Jonamac – Skyscraper at this point, 11 feet and counting, still weak looking. I’ll probably have to prune it some come early March to get it to thicken up and hold more apples better. Spring was very wet during bloom, 3 apples this year. Its probably best, it needs to thicken up.

Kidd’s Orange Red – This tree is a gem, very little interaction from me. 3 apples as well.

Orleans Reinette – I was warned that this tree was slow to grow by Cummins Nursery and they were right. Slow to fill out, late to get started each season. I wish I had planted it 2 feet further out of the cut out area of my house, so the house doesnt block the early morning sun at 8AM, so it loses an hour of sun. Probably not a big deal, the upper part of the tree get the most sun anyway. No apples, but a strong, thick grower.