Thursday, March 29, 2018

The attack of the Honeycrisp wannabees

Honeycrisp regnant
Who shall dethrone the mighty Honeycrisp?

The wolves have been circling for some time around old King Honeycrisp. This variety originated, and still dominates, the niche of super crisp, tooth-achingly sweet apples.

Honeycrisp's rival apples aspire to rule the kingdom, not to topple it. To supplant with same-only-better, not to challenge with new tastes and textures.

By when did the King get so old? What makes him vulnerable?

Friday, March 23, 2018

Apples on the web: Out on a Limb

More than a hundred thoughtful descriptions (and photos) of apples are tucked away in a small website set up to manage the Out on a Limb Apple CSA (community supported agriculture).

list of apples

The descriptions are unsigned, but authorship must certainly belong to one of the CSA's farmers, apple sleuth and rescuer John Bunker.

Friday, March 16, 2018

The Rip Van Winkle apple

GoldRush apples, from 2017 and 2016.

Long have I marveled at the wonderful keeping qualities of GoldRush, a modern variety developed by the PRI Co-op.

Packed well, GoldRush keeps in my ordinary refrigerator, peaking in April and still quite tasty in June.

So today, six months out, let's sample the fall 2017 harvest.

And while we are at it, the 2016 harvest too.

Friday, March 9, 2018

The orchard on Argilla Road

Van Gough, In The Orchard (Lithograph)
Vincent van Gogh

Eugene Crockett died suddenly in early 1932, leaving a family, a thousand fruit trees, and a pile of debt in the pit of the Depression.

Only his daughter, Kitty, wanted to keep the orchard or thought it would be possible to do so.

Friday, March 2, 2018