Apples!

[altivo]

First orchard apples of the season. This morning we went to the orchard just up the road from us and bought Royal Gala and Cortland apples. It was fairly quiet there that early, so we had a long talk with the owners about Japanese beetles and apple varieties and such. They are really nice folks, and even gave us a sack full of undersized apples for our horses. Apparently the apples are doing pretty well, in spite of the goofy weather, but some are ripening a bit late. I ate a Gala shortly after getting home and then gave Tess the core. She thought it was good and I agree.

Tomorrow: apple pie.

We also drove down to Elgin this afternoon to see friends there and let Gary pitch a mapping project he wants to do for the nature preserve they help manage. Looks like that will be a go, giving him a school project that will actually be used for something when he's done.

Comments

[marzolan.livejournal.com]

I'd make the intentionally stupid joke about growing computers, but alas, there were no macintosh apples in your list.

Real apples

[altivo.livejournal.com]

I don't care for the Macintosh apple, actually. It has a very tough skin, and the inside goes soft and mealy very quickly after picking. The flavor is good, though, and it has been used in breeding a number of much better varieties. Of the most common varieties, I prefer Jonathan, at least early in the season. They aren't the best keepers either, but they do last longer than Macintosh. ;p

Really good apples? Northern Spy, Cox's Orange Pippin, Esopus Spitzenberg, Melrose (also called Melreuge,) Westfield (also called Seek-no-further,) Gravenstein. Don't look for them in the supermarket, you won't find them.

A newcomer that is quite good is the Honeycrisp. Unfortunately, Oprah declared it her favorite, so they are in short supply and much overpriced.