Old Southern Apple Descriptions
(Page 2 of 3 - scroll the page to see apples)
Hewes Crab
Hewes Crab (Virgina Crab): This apple originated in Virginia, most likely during the early 1700’s. Its taste is unique. In most of the south, it is the finest cider apple. It makes a dry cider that is usually mixed with other varieties.Both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson knew this apple’s qualities quite well. The fruit is very small, green with a dull red, and a flesh that is firm and acidic. Ripe in September.
Hewes Crab (Virgina Crab)
Horse
Horse: A widely grown apple most likely originating in North Carolina before 1800. More than any other apple, most older southerners remember the Horse apple. There are several reasons for its widespread popularity. The tree is healthy, grows rapidly, produces large crops of big apples in the middle of summer, makes good cider, and cooks well. The Horse has a flavor unlike others. It is uniquely tart and will disappoint those who like sweet or hard apples. It is however, unforgettable. Fruit size is medium to large, yellow when ripe, possibly red on the sunny side. Flesh is yellow, soft (sometimes firm), and briskly subacid. Ripens late July into August.
Horse
Johnson Keeper
Johnson Keeper: This attractive, slightly flattened apple is a good producer and has excellent storing qualities. It may be the same apple as "Johnson's Red Winter", an apple thought to be extinct. Johnson's Red Winter orginiated near Jackson, Mississippi prior to 1885 and grows well in many climates in the South. As its name implies, is keeps well and often was still edible in the spring without modern-day refrigeration. The apple is sweet, juicy, and firm. Ripens in late October or early November.
Johnson's Keeper
Joseph's apple
Joseph's apple: Around 1910, Joseph Popek migrated from Yugoslavia to America and settled on a farm near Richmond, Va. It was here that he planted an apple tree that he brought with him. The apple tree was not named and it was soon discovered that it was well adapted to the local climate. Joseph’s grandson, Phillip, saved this valuable tree and named it Jospeh. This tree is very resistant to cedar apple rust, fireblight, powdery mildew, and apple scab. The apples are large and red. The fruit is firm and moderately sweet. It is good for fresh eating, cooking, and it stores very well. Ripens in late October. (patented)
Joseph's apple
Keener Seedling
Keener Seedling: This heavily russetted apple with a slight red blush originated in Lincoln County, NC around 1880. It is medium in size, sweet, firm and very disease resistant. It is unique in that it ripens extremely late and can hang on the tree until late November. It has a white flesh and is good for fresh eating, cooking, and storing.
Keener Seedling
David stands beside a Keener Seedling on a trellis system.
King David
King David: Orginiated around 1893 in Washington County, Arkansas. It is thought to be a cross between a Jonathan and a Winesap. It is very disease resistant (fireblight, cedar apple rust, and scab) and it is a late bloomer. The fruit ripens in late August and is mostly tart.
King David
Kinnaird’s Choice
Kinnaird’s Choice: This Tennessee apple originated in about 1855, possibly as a cross between a Winesap and Limbertwig, both discussed later in this catalog. In 1896, a prominent orchardist called it “ the finest apple grown in middle Tennessee.” It is perhaps the most attractive apple in my orchard, having a dark red color. Fruit size is medium to large usually with unequal sides. The flesh is yellow, crisp (tender if over ripe), juicy, aromatic, and mildly subacid. Ripens in September and October. (One of my favorites)
Kinnaird’s Choice.................................................................. David stands beside a six year old Kinnaird's Choice tree.
Limbertwig
Limbertwig:There are many different types of Limbertwigs, numbering around twenty. Most are named so because of the drooping nature of their limbs. Most limbertwigs have a distinctive taste, a little acidic, yet still sweet. Many simply reply: “Tastes like an old apple variety should”.
---Black Limbertwig: This apple is described as one of the best cider apples. It also makes excellent apple butter. It is red with a green background and ripens in October.
---Old Fashioned Limbertwig (also called Red Limbertwig): This apple is sweeter than many limbertwigs and ripens extremely late, mainly in November. The apple is red and firm. This apple keeps well.
---Royal Limbertwig: This high quality apple grows well in the warmer areas of the south. Fruit is medium to large, its skin yellow with some red, and its flesh fine grained, juicy, tender, and mildly subacid. Fruit ripens in October. (One of my favorites)
---Swiss Limbertwig: A wonderfully colored apple, it is red with conspicuous, large white dots. It is firm, sweet, and very crisp. It originated with Swiss settlers in the Cumberland Mountains. A truly great apple. Ripens in October.
Old Fashioned Limbertwig...........also known as Red Limbertwig
Old Fashioned Limbertwig..........also known as Red Limbertwig
Royal Limbertwig
Swiss Limbertwig
Black Limbertwig (lacks darker color due to shading in the interior of the tree... usually a darker red color)
Red Royal Limbertwig
Lowry
Lowry: This beautiful apple orginated near Afton, Va. in about 1850. It is dark red in color, medium in size, firm, and sweet. A Lowry tree full of red apples against a background of green leaves is a sight to behold. The ripening period is mid September.
Lowry
Magnum Bonum
Magnum Bonum: This apple originated in Davidson County, N.C. in 1828. The fruit is of high quality and attractive, hence many southern nurseries called it “the king of all fall apples”. The tree is productive in many areas throughout the south, though it is susceptible to cedar apple rust. The fruit is medium or smaller. The skin is yellow, covered with light red blushes and stripes. Its flesh is white, tender, juicy, fine grained, aromatic, and mildly subacid. Ripens in September. Literally, Magnum Bonum means “great good”. Enough said!!
Magnum Bonum
Magnum Bonum
Mary Reid
Mary Reid: There are many apples that are known only to a small community or to a family. These varieties have been handed down through generations due to qualities that made each worth keeping. Mary Reid is one of these varieties. It was grown by several families in southern Caswell County, N.C. where I grew up. As a child, I thought everyone had a Mary Reid tree. It was partially through the efforts of my aunt that this tree still exists. It is a good eating apple, fantastic for cooking, and it dries well. It is medium in size and can vary on the same tree. Its skin is green with a definite red on the sunny side, and it sometimes has stripes. Its flesh is white, fine grained, and somewhat tart. It ripens from late July into early September.
Mary Reid
Newtown Pippin
Newtown Pippin: Also called Albemarle Pippin or Yellow Newtown Pippin, this apple is said to have originated on Long Island, New York in 1666 as a seedling brought from England. According to Lee Calhoun in his book Old Southern Apples , it is “one of the truly great apples of the South, which grows to perfection in certain soils in Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia..... most notably in the upper Piedmont and mountains.” More so than other apples, Newtown Pippin needs a loamy, friable soil to produce a high quality crop. In the late 1700’s and early 1800’s, this apple was highly prized and often exported to London where they brought premium prices. This apple was planted by both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson at their respective estates. Fruit is large, skin yellow with a pink blush, and the flesh is yellow, firm, crisp, juicy, and subacid. Fruit ripens in October, and it stores quite well, often improving in flavor upon storage.
Newtown Pippin
Newtown Pippin
Ralls Janet
Ralls Janet: The origin of this apple is not known with certainity, but it most likely orginated in Amherst County, VA before 1800 from the farm of Caleb Ralls. He likely added the ending "Janet" because the old English word for a cross or hybrid is Jennet or Jenneting. Its most distiguishing feature is that it is one of the latest blooming trees, thereby missing late frosts. For this reason, it is nicknamed "Neverfail". It is greenish apple that can develop some light coloring if it gets enough sunshine. It is sweet, firm, and a good keeper. It ripens in late October and early November.
Ralls Janet
Red Rebel
Red Rebel: This beautiful apple, which originated around 1850 in Rappahannock County, Va., nearly fell into extinction before being rediscovered in the 1980’s. In a 1908 USDA report it notes: “The fine appearance and desert quality of the Rebel apple make it worthy of more testing. In the middle Piedmont, it grows well and is of value.” The tree is highly disease resistant and produces some of the most beautiful apples in my orchards. The apples are symmetrical, medium to large in size, a deep red color, and have a firm, white flesh. The apples are mildly sweet and pleasant. They ripen in mid September and store well into December in refrigeration.
Red Rebel
Red Rebel
End of Page 2 of Old Southern Apple Descriptions.