A sample of red flesh apple varieties growing at Hocking Hills Orchard

Hello JohnS, I do minimal spraying ie every other year with dormant oil and every year with wettable sulfur after petal fall and then only twice a month. Other than minor blemishes none of the ones I have mentioned have any disease issues.

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Are you sure? This year it rained more often than not all summer, and was cooler. And the Pink Pearl at the nearby orchard was almost purple colored the flesh was so dark, whereas the year before it was unusually hot and a drought in our area and although it still had color it wasn’t so darkly pigmented. I’ve never seen it so purple fleshed

Pink Pearl is definitely affected by temperature and rainfall amount here. This year we had more rain and a cooler than normal temps and the Pink Pearl apple were just light pink. Surprise, Airlie Red Flesh and Grenadine on the other hand were extremely intense pinkish red flesh color, Surprise more so than any time in the 10 years it has fruited.

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That’s interesting. One would think the weather would affect pigment equally among all red-flesh cultivars.

And another odd variety is Raven. I grafted my first tree of that variety back in the middle 1980’s, came from an old guy who was in his 80’s and lived on an island off Washington coast.

Always was a little pinkish, not intense, but solid. The last 4 years not a hint of pink. Still the same bittersweet flavor so a great one for cider.

And this year Grenadine and Surprise were the most intense colored flesh they have ever been.

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Interesting the seeds are red and not brown. Great looking apples Derek.

Did your apple ripening times seem off this year? I’m close to Dayton and my apples seemed to be ripe earlier by a couple of weeks. Just curious if you had that issue the in SE Ohio.

Hello MikeC and yes to earlier ripening time! By a couple of weeks on some varieties.

Thank you for letting me know this. It seemed to be an odd year for ripening times here in SW Ohio.

I had grenadine for a few years. I liked them, but the branch, not the tree succumbed to a fungal disease. Now I’m looking for a red flesh with fewer disease problems here.
John S

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Geneva? Not the rootstock, is it? Bud9 is very red, Bud118 too actually.

No, much more likely Geneva Crab. See it here and here.

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A crab, with fruit 9 cm wide? That’s crazy!

Sweet and very tart: sounds good!