I believe Greenmantle is in Garberville CA. They average 77-85F for the summer highs and 38F for winter low. Anyway they may not be warmer in summer than you.
Per the data I saw, central MA, average high is 77-79 F in July and Aug (although there were several days of 90 F this year).
The average low in the winter is around 22-25 F in Jan and Feb.
So, It is not as warm here in the summer but a lot colder in the winter.
Thats funny, I think of northern CA as much cooler than central MA, but its probably the humidity that is skewing my impression.
I lived in Mass for 4 years and the winters can be epic. Spring takes a long time to arrive. Their summers can be muggy too. There are competing air masses constantly clashing over New England and the weather is nuts there. They have a beautiful fall though, among the very best.
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Hey, wasnāt Mark Twain who said āif you donāt like the weather in New England, just wait a few minutesā.
Where in MA did you live?
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Somervilleā¦ then Arlington Centerā¦ then Arlington Heights.
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Somerville and Arlington are very urban. Great places to try all kinds of ethnic foods.
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The food in eastern Mass is without question the best. The restaurants are amazing.
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Iām late to the party here. Wickson is pretty amazing when itās right, but it is intense and not a light eating apple. It also cracks for me badly, every year. It has to be picked right at or before the first rains. That is unfortunate because it takes time for the apples to really ripen up and achieve that high sugar level. That is really itās Achilles heal. I think it has huge potential in breeding, Because of the unique flavor it gets from crab apple genes. Or, even just planting open pollinated seeds. There are some other apples with that similar flavor like vixen, muscat de venus, trailman, amberoso and a seedling I grew that Iām calling BITE ME! (yes, itās all caps with an exclamation point 
. Iād say that out of those, Vixen is most singular and worth trying. Iām pursuing that flavor in breeding to get it mixed with other flavors and characteristics. I kind of think we should just plant a lot of random Wickson seeds and Iām sure some great stuff will come of it eventually if not shortly. Of course making intentional crosses is even better.
As to Katherine, what I got as Katherine years ago may not be at all. I got a new graft that seems to be very different and is more red and more flavorful. Iām going to guess that the new one is more likely to be the real Katherine, though I might prefer the old one. the new one just started fruiting though, so weāll see and I still have to figure out when to pick it and how long to store it.
Pink Parfait is a superlative desert apple to me at itās best. The dominant flavors are honey and berry, maybe closer to strawberry than anything else. I hang it late and it seems to do very well hanging there slowly ripening. for me itās best around christmas off the tree, though i havenāt messed with storing it. It can be eaten early though Iāve already had good ones over a week ago, compelling if not totally ripe. The texture is amazing and the flavors though not extreme or in-your-face are delicious. The appetizing looking pink flesh and the external beauty of the apple are just bonuses. I will not be at all surprised if it doesnāt perform in much colder climates, but I think itās worth experimenting and for people in milder climates itās definitely one to try. It can go through multiple hard freezes like many apples, though Iām sure there is a limit. We usually donāt get below 20 f.
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Thank you for that input. Itās very helpful. These all seem to be late apples which is what Iām interested in.
Right now Iām thinking I should try Vixen, Katharine, Pink Parfait and maybe Wickson. The later seems awfully small and maybe just a novelty item not a real eating apple.
Would Waltana be worth adding to that list?
You can grow slightly bigger wicksons by thinning, but they are still small. Vixen is a trip. It really is almost like a large wickson. Iām still on the fence about it for some reason. It seems like I should love it, but Iām not sure I do. I think it should be tried more though. Oddly I just only fruited waltana this year. Nothing to write home about, but I think it may need better conditions or picking and ripening off the tree. I have a video tour of late ripening apples from last year that might be worth watching. Iām really interested in them too. If you donāt get below about 20 degrees or so, add lady williams to that list. Pink Lady (daughter of Lady Williams) is great too for hanging late. I was eating them off the tree at new years last year. They are better tree ripened than from the store, though as store apples go they seem to be pretty reliable.
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I got these descriptions from Adamapple blogs.
On Katharine
and Pink Parfait
Donāt know anything about this blogger but he/she blogged about many apple varieties.
Did you ever have any luck with Katharine, Jerry?
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I am also interested in how it worked out for Jerry.
As the original poster I should also update that five years later I still have not had another good sample. The original graft failed and I re-grafted it in a couple spots but only now is it finally fruiting again. I hope to be able to give an updated report this October or November.
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Itās certainly been slow to bear for me. After recovering from the deer damage, it was further hindered by a couple of bad aphid infestations. Itās now pretty healthy, though you can see that it has a tendency toward dense upright growth:
While it bloomed well for the last couple of seasons, it set sparsely and eventually dropped its fruitlets. This season, it looks as though Iāll finally get to harvest a couple of fruit:
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We should compare ripe apples to see if we have the same thing. I donāt recall the calyx sticking out like that on my apples. Of course environmental conditions can make the same apples look quite different in different locations.
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Iāve posted on my Katharine harvest last year: What's happening today 2020 - #1331 by Stan. Itās a strong grower and fruit setter for me. Flavor is very good.
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Iāll make sure to get some good photographs of them.
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Harvest time has arrived, and Iāve taken a few photos. Of my three Katharine apples, this one had the most sun exposure and developed the most color.
Stem end:
Blossom end:
Weight (oz.):
They might have sweetened a bit more if Iād left them on the tree for another week or two, but the birds had finally found them. Still, theyāre excellent. Flesh is crisp and juicy, reminiscent of a Stayman but a bit less coarse/more dense. Flavor is a very pleasing sweet/tart mix with some interesting aromatic notes, including vanilla. Iām not much for describing tastes, but I liked it a lot and it was a big hit with my wife and friends.
The tree was quite slow to bear, but Iām glad that I held onto it now. @Stanās description of his success with it convinced me to give it one more season - thanks, @Stan!
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I feel bad that I could not grow it as it is very late ripening variety. I grafted it in the past but removed it. Pink Lady is as late as I could muster here.
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