What Ed said about those listed apples might be true in one area but not
necessarily so in another. Here in North East Wisconsin zone 4 and listed
as 5 on some maps, Golden supreme is rated quite high. My orchard is about
a half mile (the way crow flies) from the University of Wisc. Experiment
station and they rate that apple around the top 3 of the many named
varieties they have. I have it grafted two years ago and it has not
produced for me but have tasted it there and look forward to growing
it. Kensei, I have and it is a great sweet hard juicy apple that stores
quite well and one I would highly recommend especially in zone 4+. One that
is not very popular is the Honey Crisp because of flavor. Just the other
day I brought some from the cooler and they are hard, crisp, juicy and
tasteless. In fact my wife commented, you can get as much flavor from a
glass of water as this apple has. I might add there are varieties they have
that are numbered at this time that are superior to what is on the market
but will not be available for a number of years. They have to be proven for
hardiness. disease resistance and a lot of other items before they are
released.
Ed: You recommended I go to the station regarding pear stoney pit virus,
but that is the place I got it from in a scion exchange. They pulled out
their European pears the same year I did and it is nasty disease that is
quite common in this area. You will know when you have stoney pit when you
cut into the fruit. Its called stoney for a reason, hard as a rock. Super
group of people out there. Just a different look at things. Ray