Temp here got down to 24 F yesterday morning,
I picked one Gold Rush today to try. Not ripe yet. Tasted subpar. Light brown seeds.
I look forward to sunny and in the 60 F later this week.
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My GR trees set a very heavy crop, those that had good exposure ripened in time before the hard freeze of 15F
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These are all goldrush apples from Soleburry orchard in PA. Sooo many! They seemed ripe to me, riper than mine and more yellow. I havenāt tried mine yet so canāt compare taste. This picture was about half of their Gold Rush row.
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I think it is all about how much sun a tree gets. @JesseinMaine is in zone 4b, his fruit ripen better than mine. It tells me that Jesseās trees have far better sun exposure than mine.
Mine is in a partial sunny spot. It gets about 5 hours of sun in the summer. Only the top of the tree gets more than 5 hours.
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@mamuang, I wonder how are your Gold Rush in storage after frost exposure? I know they didnāt show any damage, but wondering if the frost affects the storing ability?
Picked gold rush from my tree yesterday. In late January!
Very juicy, strong apple aroma. Quite sweet. The cosmic crisp that I had after was muddy and lack luster by comparison. (Store bought poorly stored most likely)
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Ramv,
Your GR looked like a Granny Smith 
@galinas,
Most of my GR that I picked to store went through temp between 27-30 several times. I picked them before temp went down to 21-22 F.
Of the 10 GR that were left on the tree through 21 F, 2-3 were frozen and inedible on the tree. The rest were OK but the texture suffered, less firm than it was supposed to be. They were fine in storage but the eating quality has suffered.
I kept my GR in closed bags in a cooler (thanks for giving me the idea) in the unfinished basement. Temp there is around 40F.
It took this one out to show you. Firm, a blend of tartness and sweet ( more tart). This one turned yellow in storage but was picked before it ripened. Seeds were not dark. Overall quality was compromised as a result.
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Thanks for your comment @mamuang.
I have a few more in the refrigerator that were harvested last month. Will cut one tonight to see if it is good.
Compromised because it was not picked ripe or because it went through the low 27-30 temperatures? Mine do not turn yellow yet, just few of them, but I picked them before the first frost.
I planted a Gold Rush last spring (along with) Akane & Hudson Golden Gem. I have goumi bushes (red gem, sweet scarlet) planted between those (nitrogen fixers).
They all grew nicely first year.
We often get our first frost late as early as late Octoberā¦ but this year we only had a few minor frosts in November, and first really hard frost was in early December.
I was still harvesting raspberries and CH Figs on Dec 1 and Dec 3ā¦ Dec 3 was my last harvest of those this year.
So I suppose when my Gold Rush does start producingā¦ I may have to harvest anywhere from late Oct to early Decā¦ depending on when first hard frost comesā¦ The catalog said ripe in Octoberā¦ but sounds like you need to let them hang on even later if possible.
I saw a guy on youtube eating one in March that he had kept in cold storage all winter, and he said it was still a very good eat.
If I do get some fruit set this year or next I will have to keep this thread in mind on when to pick.
TNHunter
The ones that went through 21-22 F were not good, mealy.
The ones that went through 27-30F several times (but never below 27 F) are in two categories.
Those with 75% or more ripened when picked - good to very good. They can turn yellower in storage.
Less than 75% ripened when picked, not good. We ate a green one, It tasted like an unripe apple (a spitter). I donāt think it will ever turn yellow.
So, it depends on how close to ripen they are. The closer, the better, of course. I have many that are still green in storage after 2 months. I donāt have hope for them.
@mamuang The only Goldrush fruit Iāve seen for sale in our area were picked green, like you describe 
Murky,
@ramvās GR was so green but he said it tasted great. Maybe, long hanging green GR does help it taste good. Any of my GR that is that green tasted unripe.
For mine to taste any good, they had to turn some yellow, the yellower, the better. Unfortunately, this past harvest, none of mine was very yellow.
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I can eat and somewhat like a GR before they get yellow but when they take on the golden yellow look they move up to excellent and they donāt last long at our house.
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This is my first year to get a Goldrush harvest from 2018 grafts. I donāt know when to pick them. They are getting a golden blush on the south side but the north side of the apples are still very green.
I ate one 2 weeks ago and it was definitely under-ripe. I think I understand what you all mean by āstarchyā now.
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You could wait for one apple to drop first.
You can cut open the one in the pic and check the color of its seeds. Dark brown will be good. Ripe GR have a darker yellow color.
Last year, most of my GR did not fully ripen. We donāt have a hot summer or strong sun like the Midwest growers do.
I bet you that your GR ripen better for you than even though your zone is a tad colder, per zoning criteria.
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I officially give up trying to determine peak time to pick Goldrush. Iāve picked at all color phases and none yields consistent good results. Only thing I know for sure: letting them tree ripen gives a disappointing result, at least here. One tree on G935 is 70% defoliated probably from the new Marsonina Leaf Blotch, so those apples may never ripen. Other tree on M7 has no MLB.
If I were starting over Iād search for varieties that ripened all at once.
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I ate that green one when I took the dogs for a walk. It was better than the last one I ate, but still not ripe. I tossed the core and forgot to check the seed color! With all the wind we have been having I am sure another one will be blown off soon and I will remember to check the seeds. We are still having really warm weather - mid 90s this past weekend and we are in the mid 70s this week.
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I would be surprised if the KS ones are ripe yet. I tried one last week and it was a long way from what I would consider to be ripe. They are one of my favorite eating apples when they are ready.
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None of this relates to my experience in harvesting Gold Rush in southern NY. If the apples turn yellow on the tree they will be delicious the moment they are picked, they will also hold their quality and texture until temps drop somewhere below 25. If they are completely green they will never turn into a nice eating apple.
How well any variety of apple endures freezing is probably dependent on how much antifreeze they have in their juice, that anti-freeze being sugar. 27 degrees should not damage the quality of any high-brix apple in my experience. Maybe Iām missing something, but it seems to me either the flesh is frozen or not and there is no subtle damage from excessive cold. Late picked apples all hold up in storage equally for me.
Marmās comments about how they perform under very poor sun exposure is interesting because I would never try to grow a late ripening variety in such a sun challenged spot. Mine lose a couple hours of late afternoon sun to the hillside and trees and that alone reduces their quality on years with retarded springs compared to sites exposed from dawn to dusk.
I donāt find harvesting Goldrush any more challenging than other apples besides the fact that some years when you have to harvest them, many wonāt be worth the effort because they are still too green.
Iām hoping Crunch-a-bunch may solve that problem, but there are many other late ripening good storage apples that might not still be good in spring but will get me through most of winter.
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