North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Biz Storms" <biz.storms@sympatico.ca>]

Lisa,

Ask ten people their three favorite apples, and you'll like hear at least 
twenty plus different varieties. It's just so personal, and seasonal. Having 
said that, here's how some of your apple varieties turn out in zone 5.
Wolf River apples grow large, really large, and are better for cooking than 
eating. Not they they taste bad, there's just not too much of a taste, at 
all.
Arkansas Blacks have a very long taste. Quite strong at first, then 
mellowing and marginally sweetening. Peel away the skin, and they're almost 
lush. The skin gives them a bit more intensity. They also look gorgeous on 
the tree. They're like Tumanga in that they're really chewy.
Eating a Rubinette is somewhat close to eating a Cox's Orange. (  Parents 
are supposedly Golden Delicious X Cox's Orange. ) The flesh is a soft 
yellow, and is quite dense. It's a beautiful looking apple with the dark red 
skin and a wonderful fruitful taste. The Rubinettes I enjoyed were grown in 
Michigan, north of Traverse City, which I think is also zone 5. Kidd's 
Orange also have a similar taste - they call them Captain Kidd's in New 
Zealand.
Hudson's Gold Gem is one of my favorite dessert apples for November and 
December. The flesh softens up a bit, but the rich taste makes up for it. 
Goes fantastic with cheese and ice wine. They need the storage time to 
develop. If the russet skin bothers you, you can peel them and it doesn't 
alter the taste. Think Golden Russet - but not as sweet.
My first Melrose apple had little taste, just a juicy crunch. The next round 
was better, with a slight sweet taste, lots of juicy crunch, but also a 
clean finish. It's a shiny, red apple which many folks prefer. I'd rather 
have a Macoun, Hubbardston or Westfield Seek No Further.
Our one and only Spitzenberg that the chipmunks didn't steal was not too 
bad. Smaller than expected, with some russeting, but a nice apple taste. It 
was crisp, only a little juicy and had a zing to it. Our tree is inside our 
kitchen garden, which is quite protected and holds the heat because of the 
brick edgings and walkways. Between a zone 6 to 7 for summer heat. The last 
week you could almost see the colour intensifying.
I've also eaten loads of zone 6 Winesaps. Dark thin skin with a soft melting 
bite. Just that gorgeous fruity wine taste. Don't know how well they'll do 
with heat, since they ripen almost overnight. I had a Nova Scotia apple this 
summer, called Tangowine - very similar.

Can't say about the Tompkins King, Spigold, Blenheim, Zabergau or Newton 
Pippin - they haven't fruited yet.
Think about grafting onto dwarf or semi-dwarf. They'll fruit earlier, so you 
can decide if you want to keep them, or try something else.
Enjoy your apples - since you  have a wide range of tastes

Cheers, Biz Storms
Toronto/Creemore, Ontario Zone 5

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Lisa Almarode" <lisaalmarode@yahoo.com>
To: "North American Fruit Explorers" <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Wednesday, March 09, 2005 2:52 PM
Subject: [NAFEX] Apple varities


> Just for fun, these are the apples scions I've got
> this year that I will attempt to graft this year; I
> could use any "that's a terrible apple" advice.
> Hardiness and length of season don't matter here, but
> ability to handle heat and sun does.
>
>  Wolf River
>  Rubinette
>  Arkasas Black
>  Sops of Wine
>  Winter White Pearmain
>  Tomkins King
>  Melrose
>  Spigold
>  Hudson's Golden Gem
>  Wynnoche early
>  Roxbury Russet
>  Blenheim Orange
>  Zabergau Reinette
>  Esopus Spitzenberg
>  Braeburn
>  Gravenstein
>  Yellow Newton Pippen
>  Gala
>  Winesap
>
> Of course I doubt they'll all make it...
>
>
> Lisa in Ashland Oregon
> USDA Z7 - Sunset Z7 - 1800' - 19" annual rainfall
>
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