Maybe someone can point me in the right direction. Am trying but failing to find any mention of the parents of MonArk apple. It’s a product of University of Arkansas apple breeding project but I sure can’t find any details in any books I have or on the internet.
Am curious what parents produced such a good summer apple. Thanks for any ideas.
PS Monarch with an “h” is a different apple.
Looks like its NJ674016 × NJ40, whatever those are. It appears that they raided the NJ breeding program. See this link. AA-44 is MonArk.
Hey it looks like UMN’s new apple has MonArk as a parent… Rave is the name, MN55.
@scottfsmith Thanks Scott! You’re a good sleuth. Man I could not track that down no matter where I looked. So MonArk is New Jersey x New Jersey. With that pedigree it must have an accent. Yes, interesting that Arkansas raided NJ breeders. Maybe that’s why it’s so hard to access.
It did take me awhile. First I found it was called AA-44 and then when I searched AA-44 I eventually found the article. I enjoy a good Google challenge 
Of course, listing the research property numbers does not give us the parentage of those. Maybe someday someone can access the files in NJ and learn more about Monark. The grandparents and great-grands may tell us something substantive. Failing that, it may take DNA analysis. If I only had the $$!
Prof. Rom at U of Ark emailed me that years ago someone violated a no-propagation agreement and released the apple to the trade before research was finished. So there never was an official release which might explain why the apple flies under the radar and is little known.
MonArk is the favorite ‘non-crab’ apple in my orchard.
Ripe early to mid July here. Early enough to avoid most insect pest pressure…some PC but usually not much in the way of codling moth damage.
Large fruit with crisp, white subacid flesh. Good for fresh eating, cooking, drying - and unlike most ‘early’ apples, it keeps 6 weeks or longer, in the fridge, without going mealy.
Ripens its crop over a several week period, so requires multiple pickings.
fwiw I just got a beautiful Monark from Vintage Virginia Apples on M; large, lots of roots
Bob-Did you get it on M7 as I did? Am never sure whether to permanently stake M7 so I put in a 8 ft T bar just in case. We get the occasional hurricane here.
Sounds like a great apple http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/nafex/2006-July/022983.html. Ed
Fackler grew it as well as Nick Botner NICK BOTNER’S APPLES | Seedling Apples.
yes M7. I tend use use m111 but I’m trying some of everything. I also have an 8 year old Enterprise on M7; its done great, but it leans 20 degrees or so; I probably should have staked it
Mamuang,
Lucky is a great resource for pears and apples but I suspect grafting nut trees is his favorite hobby right now. The standard stuff is to easy for him nowadays because he has been there and done that.
Between your post here and the other resurrected from a NAFEX thread, along with a quote from a woman who described a common Spokane summer, I think I need to get Monark started in this area.
Thanks for contributing!
Rave should be an interesting early apple. It’s a cross between MonArk and Honeycrisp.
I got my first MonArks recently and they have that crisp texture and refreshing tart flavor I’ve been looking for in a summer apple. I haven’t baked with it yet, but it should be a winner if it holds its shape.
I got exactly one off my tree this year and I have the same opinion as you do - tart and seemed pretty solid. I have a couple grafts and hope to get more from it.
The NJ are selections of the PRI consortium. I recall reading that the seedlings were initially grown at Illinois or Purdue, some early disease screening, and then planted out for field evaluation at other sites. Those that were planted and evaluated by Rutgers got the NJ designation. Many NJ selections are in the lineage of the PRI Coop releases and other recent breeding programs like Ark that used PRI selections for their own crosses.
You might find more information at the Purdue PRI website or send an e-mail to Rutgers to find out more about these particular NJ selections.
About PRI - search in the databases on the right side although they were not working when I tried.
I also looked on the USDA GRIN but did not find any NJ selections in their holding. Many varieties with PRI designations.