My Apple Harvest Highlights – 2024 Edition

Hello and welcome to this year’s fruit harvest highlights round-up!

This year I’m focusing on apples, rather than including soft fruit and other types of top fruit in the mix as I did for my 2023 round-up. This is partly because we didn’t have a great year for soft fruit on our allotment; gooseberries, raspberries, blackcurrants, redcurrants, strawberries, whitecurrants and the like were okay, but they weren’t great. Once again, I blame the weird weather patterns: a very dull, grey spring and a wet summer seemed to provide too little light and consistent warmth – in our neck of the woods at least – for much of anything to thrive.

Pears and plums seemed to have been hit particularly hard in the orchards at work – National Trust Quarry Bank, where I’m a part-time gardener and 24/7 fruit geek – and we had barely any crop to speak of. Whitecurrants fared better – the plants at work do enjoy the shelter of a wall, so that probably helped – and we had a decent crop of apricots. But the local squirrel population destroyed the peaches and nectarines; the little furry so-and-sos chewed through the hard, green fruit and the stones inside to get at the kernels, long before any of them had a chance to ripen.

I’m happy to say that it was a much, much better year for apples. Between the cordons on our allotment and the trees at work, I got to grow, sample and enjoy around fifty varieties of apple over the course of the summer and autumn.

Here’s a selection of the varieties that were available round about the end of September:

Top row, L to R: ‘Howgate Wonder’, ‘Blenheim Orange’, ‘Charles Ross’, ‘Ellison’s Orange’, ‘Upton Pyne’, ‘Nine Square’, ‘Royal Jubilee’

Second row, L to R: ‘Ribston Pippin’, ‘Wareham Russet’, ‘Norfolk Beefing’, ‘Adams’s Pearmain’, ‘Grandpa Buxton’, ‘unknown’, ‘Scotch Bridget’ (?)

Third row, L to R: ‘Cox’s Orange Pippin’, ‘Ten Commandments’, ‘Ashmead’s Kernel’, ‘Lucombe’s Pine’, Rosemary Russet’, ‘Egremont Russet’, ‘Duke of Devonshire’

Bottom row, L to R: ‘Kidd’s Orange Red’, ‘Nutmeg Pippin’, ‘Herefordshire Russet’, Worcester Pearmain’, ‘Kerry Pippin’ (?), ‘Court of Wick’, ‘Saturn’, ‘Pitmaston Pine Apple’, ‘Downton Pippin’

There are a couple of question-marks in there because one of the orchards at work has a number of trees that were planted in the 1990s or 2000s and have since lost their labels. We do have a list of the varieties that are supposed to be in that orchard, so back in October I picked a few fruits from every tree that had produced any, and tried to i.d. match against the last-known list of varieties. I came up with five or six probable / definite matches and another half dozen possible / maybes, two of which are the (?)-marked apples.

There’s also one marked ‘unknown’, because I can’t remember if this is the unknown, possibly seedling variety from one of the orchards at work, although I suspect it isn’t, as the apples from that tree are mostly a lot smaller than the one in the photo; or the apple from the tree on our allotment that was supposed to be ‘Greensleeves’, but clearly wasn’t, which I’ve since almost certainly re-identified as ‘Delbard Jubile’; or the apple from the mis-labelled ‘Rosemary Russet’ tree at work that turned out to be ‘Gravenstein’. I suspect the latter, but I can’t be sure.

Anyhow, that’s a really nice selection of three-dozen apple varieties, from the fifty or so I had access to across the season. I’ve hopefully got an even wider selection to come next year, as I have a few young cordon trees on my allotment plot that haven’t fruited yet, but might be mature enough for a crop in 2025.

Ten o’ The Best

“But tell us,” I hear you cry, “which are the best apples that you grow?” Well, of course, “best” is always a subjective measure, and one person’s deliciousness is going to be another person’s “meh!”, but I am happy to present the following list of my own, entirely subjective and very personal, favourite varieties of 2024.

In alphabetical order, rather than last to first – because dammit, I love them all so – they were:

‘Court of Wick’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

This unassuming little apple, from the kitchen garden at Quarry Bank, may not look like it has much to shout about, but it packs a satisfyingly decent punch in the flavour department.

It isn’t a russet per se, but it’s got as bit of russet to it and on flavour grounds alone I think it’s enough for me to want to add it to the allotment collection this year.

‘Ellison’s Orange’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

This year was the first opportunity I’d had to try ‘Ellison’s Orange’ and when I did, it was love at first bite. It has great depth of flavour, with a distinct aniseedy note that adds plenty of complexity.

We have three ‘Ellison’s Orange’ trees at work – although, looking at the photos above and cross-referencing with the pics on FruitID and the N.F.C., I do have to wonder whether we actually have the sport variety ‘Red Ellison’s Orange‘, rather than the original – and I’ll definitely be snipping a few scions this winter, so I can graft a couple of new trees for the allotment.

‘Herefordshire Russet’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

The ‘Herefordshire Russet’ tree on my allotment has a habit of producing rather small apples – the ones in the pic above were only 5-6cm in diameter – no matter how much thinning I do in June, and they do take a long time to ripen.

They’re worth the wait though – very tasty indeed. I’m hoping to snip a couple of scions this year and re-graft it to a different rootstock, to see if a new, cordon-trained tree can produce larger apples in a few years’ time.

‘Kidd’s Orange Red’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

One of my favourite later-ripening (September into October) dessert apples, ‘Kidd’s Orange Red’ is another russet-ish apple with a delicious, slightly nutty flavour. Not one to pick too early, it needs to hang on the tree a while to develop properly. Again, worth the wait.

‘Nutmeg Pippin’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

These apples came from one of the cordon trees on the allotment, which was only planted a couple of years ago. This is the first year of fruit production for that tree and it bodes very well indeed for the harvests to come.

A very tasty russet apple, ‘Nutmeg Pippin’ wasn’t quite a as spicy as the name might suggest, but hopefully in future years, and maybe with a bit more summer sunshine to develop its flavours fully, it live up to its full, spicy promise.

‘Pitmaston Pine Apple’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

Another first-time taste experience for me this year, and another taste sensation. I’m very happy to report that this cheerfully yellow, slightly russeted little apple doesn’t taste of pineapple, as quite a few sources suggest it should¹I rather suspect that the name ‘Pitmaston Pine Apple’ has been compacted to ‘Pitmaston Pineapple’, and the assumption that it must have been so-named because the apple tastes like pineapple has followed hard on its heels. But I’m not entirely sure. Hmmm. I think I can feel another research project coming on…. Which came as a great relief, as I really can’t stand the flavour of pineapple²I’ve always deeply disliked it, ever since I was a kid. I suspect I have some sort of allergy, but I’ve never been tested, so let’s just call it a strong aversion..

Instead, this charming little fruit has a deliciously citrusy flavour with hints of another tropical fruit… maybe papaya? Something subtle, and very, very tasty. No wonder when I posted pics on BlueSky and the other place, folks responded to say it was their favourite apple of all time.

‘Rosemary Russet’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

Another one from the allotment collection of russet varieties, ‘Rosemary Russet’ – and this tree is ‘Rosemary Russet’, unlike the tree at work that was labelled ‘Rosemary Russet’, but clearly wasn’t – is a classic russet, with great depth of flavour and a good, firm, but not too crunchy texture. I’m really looking forward to this one reaching its full productivity in a few years’ time.

‘Royal Jubilee’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

This Victorian-era cooking apple surprised me when it turned up in my top-ten, as it wouldn’t normally be the sort of apple I’d rave about. The actual tree itself is a particularly lovely veteran – I’ll post details and pics some time, it really does deserve it’s own spotlight – and this year it was hugely productive, despite its apparent age.

The reason I was so impressed; ‘Royal Jubilee’ apples make really good dried apple rings. I cored them and sliced them thinly, with the skin left on, then dehydrated them for a few hours, and the burst of fresh flavour from the dried rings is quite delicious. I’m sure they will be especially welcome in the depths of winter.

‘Tydeman’s Early Worcester’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

Packed with flavour, ‘Tydeman’s Early Worcester’ is my very favourite early season dessert apple. It’s usually ready round about the end of August or into the first week of September and I far prefer it to some of the other early season varieties I’ve tried³Particularly ‘Beauty of Bath’, which seems to go really soft and mealy, really quickly. I do like a ‘Discovery’ though, I will say that..

I already have three cordon trees of ‘Tydeman’s Early Worcester’ on the allotment, if I remember right. Hmmm. Only three? Perhaps I should think about grafting up one or two more..?

‘Winter Gem’

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

I really didn’t expect to enjoy this modern-ish (1975) variety anywhere near as much as I did, when I tried it for the first time this year. ‘Winter Gem’ has really good flavour and a pleasantly firm, but not overly-crunchy texture, with plenty of juice. Yum.

It’s not as late-ripening as the name might suggest, either. These apples were picked from another cordon tree on the allotment at the end of October, and they were the last of a crop that we’d been eating for a fortnight or so prior. Definitely worth trying, if you get the chance, and a good apple to extend the cropping season.

Those were my ten favourite apples of 2024. But I can’t finish an apple harvest round-up without introducing you to (fanfare and drum-roll, please) …

The Champion Apple of 2024!

Info: FruitID.com | National Fruit Collection

Once again it’s a ‘Howgate Wonder’⁴I do have to wonder whether the Champion Apple will ever be anything else… that takes the laurels, this year weighing in at 708g, and with a close runner-up at 687g as well. Both of these impressively massive apples came from the same stepover tree on the allotment, along with about a dozen more of anything from 300g to 600g each. This is, of course, same stepover tree that has produced the champion apples of 2023 (646g) and 2022 (771g); the latter is still the current record-holder.

Will this same tree break the record next year? Will another tree ever be able to compete with these enormous apples? Tune in next year to find out…

The Also-Rans

Just for the sake of completeness, and for future reference, I should probably mention the other varieties that fruited in 2024, the ones that didn’t make it into either the top-ten, or the photo further up the page.

Those would be the likes of: ‘Beauty of Bath’, ‘Cornish Aromatic’, ‘Gravenstein’, ‘James Grieve’, ‘Keswick Codlin’, ‘Knobby Russet’, ‘Laxton’s Superb’, ‘Lord Clyde’, ‘Lord Derby’, ‘Lucombe’s Pine’, ‘Monarch’, ‘Monty’s Surprise’, ‘Reinette du Canada’, and ‘Withington Welter’ (a.k.a. ‘Withington Fillbasket’).

All good apples – well, except ‘Beauty of Bath’, which I don’t rate particularly highly – in their own right, just not ready at the right time for the class photo.

So there we have it, my apple harvest highlights for 2024. A surprisingly good year, and a very welcome one, too. Even though the season has barely ended, I’m already looking forward to 2025; I have about a dozen cordons to add to the allotment this winter, and another 20 or so to graft up. I’m also really looking forward to carrying out the winter pruning for all the trees I’m caring for, as well as running a pruning training session or two, and a grafting workshop, and working on some plans for the future development of the fruit growing spaces at Quarry Bank. Oh, and I’ll be working on my indoor photography as well – some of those photos were really badly focused and the colour balance was way off…

How about you? Have you had a good year for fruit growing? Are you in the southern hemisphere and already seeing fruitlets forming for your harvest? What were your 2024 highlights, and what are you looking forward to in 2025? Please do let me know, via the comments, or by email.

Footnotes

• 1
  I rather suspect that the name ‘Pitmaston Pine Apple’ has been compacted to ‘Pitmaston Pineapple’, and the assumption that it must have been so-named because the apple tastes like pineapple has followed hard on its heels. But I’m not entirely sure. Hmmm. I think I can feel another research project coming on… ↩︎
• 2
  I’ve always deeply disliked it, ever since I was a kid. I suspect I have some sort of allergy, but I’ve never been tested, so let’s just call it a strong aversion. ↩︎
• 3
  Particularly ‘Beauty of Bath’, which seems to go really soft and mealy, really quickly. I do like a ‘Discovery’ though, I will say that. ↩︎
• 4
  I do have to wonder whether the Champion Apple will ever be anything else… ↩︎