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Homestead Farm Apple Varieties and Tentative Picking Dates
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| Pick your own apples! Ah, what could be better? Crisp, fresh fruit directly off the tree. Check the list below for a good description of apples available at Homestead. Turn off that computer! Go picking! Go see a table that shows different uses for a variety of Apple. (Touch on small apple photos to see larger image). See Apple Facts page. |
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| Royal Gala — August 15th |
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Very sweet, firm, exciting. Medium sized, conic to round. Light golden- yellow with a pinkish-orange blush. Striking, peach-like appearance. Red Delicious and Cox’s Pippin are the grandparents and Golden Delicious is a parent. For folks with a sweet tooth, Gala is the best. Good dessert apple.
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| Jonathan— August 25th |
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Tart, rich, real apple flavor. Offspring of Esopus Spitzenburg, first described in 1826. Many Midwesterners consider Jonathan the best flavored apple in the world. Great for pies.
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| Empire — September 10th |
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A Red Delicious/Macintosh cross from the Geneva, N.Y.  Experiment Station at Cornell. Medium-sized, round, dark red apple of gorgeous, glossy appearance; sweet, juicy, firm, and aromatic. At its peak, Empire “cracks” when you bite it. A great apple for kids.
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| Golden Delicious — September 10th |
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A golden-skinned, medium to large apple shaped somewhat like Red  Delicious; tendency to russet in humid growing areas. Second heaviest grown variety in the U.S. and Europe's leading variety. Crisp flesh, mild, sweet, rich flavor. Bruises easily. Keeps shape well in cooking.
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| Red Delicious — September 10th |
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Crimson to carmine; bloom polishes to an intense shine; sweet mild  fruit that most of America loves. Our strain has been selected for productivity and color. It keeps well and improves on storage.
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| Jonagold — September 15th |
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Jonagold is a wonderful flavored, very large, sweet, mid-season apple  with a relatively short storage and shelf life. Like Beaujolais, Jonagold should be savored when young (soon after harvest). Dessert quality.
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| Melrose — September 15th |
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An outstanding Jonathan/Red Delicious cross combining the rich flavor  of Jonathan and the crisp juicy texture and sweetness of Red Delicious. Round shape, dull red color. Larger than Jonathan and a much better keeper. A “best” for caramel apples.
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| Stayman Winesap — September 25th |
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A large offspring of the Winesap having similar attributes. Excellent  keeper, bruise resistant, dull red coat. Flavor subacid, aromatic. Fruit has a tendency to crack. Another good apple for pies.
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| Braeburn — October 1st |
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A brand-new seedling from New Zealand with the right stuff. Appearance  similar to Fuji’s, pale pink striped. A bit richer flavored and firmer than Fuji, but not quite as good a keeper.
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| Rome Beauty — October 1st |
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Glossy red skin; firm, white flesh with tart flavor. A good cooking apple.  Choice of great chefs for baking.
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| Cameo — October 7th |
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A large, round subaced apple with red blush stripe over yellow.
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| Sun Crisp — October 7th |
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A hard tart, long keeping apple. Red over orange color. |
| Pink Lady — October 7th |
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Blush over pink colors. Sweet tart taste. Will store in the fridge 6 months or more.
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| Sun Fuji — October 10th |
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A Ralls Janet/Red Delicious cross, bred in Japan, where it is the number- one seller. Pale pink stripes over a light background; attractive but not gorgeous. Best-keeping sweet apple in the world. In a refrigerator, Fuji will keep through April and still be cracking crisp.
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| Granny Smith — October 10th |
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A very late-maturing, medium-sized, tart-flavored, grass-green-skinned  apple from Australia. To reach perfection Granny Smith requires a very long growing season. A good-quality apple and outstanding keeper with a winning name.
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