Apple Affair!

[flowerlady]

Did anyone make an Apple Fest this year?

So wanted to go to West Dean - Sussex, but as usual work had me going in the other direction    :-\

Yesterday I was given an amazing fresh apple.  The bloom on it was as dark as a really ripe peach, maroon with a purple haze over the skin.  The flesh was amazingly white , the taste so crisp and juicy ...

.... BUT - nobody knew the name   >:( ... and I can't even grow it from a pip 'cos it won't grow true  :'(

Need to get an 'orchard' started.  What would folk recommend?

- when I do buy apples they are usually Braeburns,  but they don't have the flavour that this one had yesterday   :D

[flowerlady]

[saddad]

Have a look at some of the online catalogues, bring your salt cellar with you!
I have Minarettes of Discovery, Fiesta to eat as ripe from Aug to Oct. A Egremont Russet and Blenheim Orange for Nov to Feb. from store. I also have a Saturn on the bottom allotment. Foreign apples tend not to do as well in our climate.... there are lots of others I want to grow as well...
::)

[triffid]

Flowerlady -- if you know the owner of the apple tree, you could probably get an ID via Brogdale (with nearly 2,000 varieties in their collection, they know a thing or two about apples!)...

Professional Analysis

Fruit ID

Carried out by the famous Pomologist, Dr Joan Morgan, who can identify most varieties of apple and pear.
Please send in 3 fruits, some leaves and one year old wood, with your cheque made payable to Brogdale Horticultural Trust for £18.80 (incl. VAT).

http://www.brogdale.org/orchard_design.html

[beejay]

Sounds something like a Spartan.

As to what apples are recommended that is so difficult but I would definately suggest Discovery as they are the first to crop in the summer & are delicious.

[Barnowl]

I've got fruit farmers on both my Mum and Dad's sides and they (the farmers) think it's very funny that I've taken to gardening after all these years

We've only space for two trees and will have to buy some apples anyway so there's no point in growing anything readily available in the shops like Cox or Bramley's although we  love them. Fond of Braeburn's too.

With a variety of advice (before discovering A4A) we have ended up with Red Falstaff  and Winter Gem. Only a few on each this year but both have excellent flavour and texture - also Winter Gem are meant to store well but these won't get a chance! Don't know what others think of them?

[jennym]

I've got Winter Gem, do like it too. Good taste, and crop was good this year.

[saddad]

I have an August fruiting, angular, early cooker on one plot... having looked through the books I think it is an Emneth Early (Syn Early Victoria) I might get them to check it for me next summer...
Has anyone else tried Red Falstaff... I have considered getting one..
8)

[flowerlady]

Wow this has given me some research to do ... hey ho back to the books !!  ;)

[Barnowl]

Some info and pics on this site but NB grown in containers so more expensive.

=Apples]http://www.giftsthatgrow.co.uk/products.php?product[]=Apples

[moonbells]

I've had a whopping harvest from my mystery eater this year. I can recommend going to look at Brogdale during September/October if you can (bit late for this year!) as they're mid-harvest.

If you want an apple identifying, it's £18.80 and you need three good specimens, but you get a free ticket for a guided tour (£6.00) which I would have bought anyway. A volunteer takes you round, and it's fascinating. And there's a huge number of trees!

Identification can take a few months as they do so many - I'm hoping mine don't rot in the cold store before they get done. I've a very prolific tall eater, with very crisp flesh when fresh. In previous years it's been green with a red flush on the sunward side, but this year they've nearly all gone a fantastic maroon colour, and I've picked loads.

Have several mushroom boxes under the stairs full of them and the Bramleys (which have been astonishing).

I await the identification with impatience!!

moonbells

[artichoke]

I have an ancient tree on my allotment said to be Cox and the apples are wonderful but very late ripeners. Best crop ever, this year, crisp, sweet and delicious, but the tree is so overgrown most of them have to be windfalls (I can't reach the top ones and knock others down with a hoe) so they don't keep.

[moonbells]

You could do with an apple picker!

I have spent years trying to hook them down (Bramley's huge) and this year gave up - figured if I was going to the effort of growing decent apples, and putting up pheromone traps etc, knocking them off with a bamboo cane probably wasn't a good idea!
Bought a Wolf extendable picker with some gift tokens, and it's fantastic. Light to use, sturdy, can get three or four in the bag in one fish :) and even if the basket looks way too big, I've had a Bramley or few that nearly wouldn't fit...

Expensive though. Hence using the garden tokens.

:)

moonbells

[artichoke]

How high do you reckon you can reach with it? Say, your height plus the length of the pole - and is it easy to manoevre through criss-crossing branches (I know it needs pruning, but I can't reach for that either)?