A Brief History of the Apple
Whether you start with Adam and Eve or the Stone Age man in Europe, the apple has been around from the beginning. When the Romans conquered England around the first century B.C., they brought apple growing with them. William Tell shot an apple off his son's head at the order of Swiss invaders. The Pilgrims discovered crabapples when they arrived in the New World and as America was settled, nearly every farm grew apples. John Chapman, a.k.a. Johnny Appleseed, became famous for planting trees throughout Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois.
Today, over 650 varieties grow in the United States. They come in all shapes, sizes, shades and flavors and the best have become "household words" like McIntosh, Delicious, Empire, Rome, Spartan, Cortland and Granny Smith.
For a complete listing of U.S. apple varieties click here.
Vermont Apples
What Vermont may lack in quantity as an apple-producing state, it makes up for in quality. Apples and apple products like applesauce, cider and hard cider are among the more important and cherished Vermont exports. In fact, in 1999, the Vermont legislature designated the apple as the state fruit, and the apple pie as the state pie.
The state has almost 4,000 acres of commercial apple production, most of it devoted to sustainable farming practices that respect the fruit and the land it’s grown on. Vermont’s leading varieties are McIntosh, Cortland, Red Delicious and Empire.
For more details, click here.
Vermont’s Apple Heartland - The Apples of Addison County
To give you an idea of what’s growing in Vermont’s apple heartland, Edible Green Mountains magazine visited four families on four very different orchards. Here are their stories, and their apples.
Growing Apples in Vermont
Growing an apple in Vermont is a yearlong endeavor. Here’s a quick look at how it happens through the seasons.
Winter
In January, while the trees are dormant, pruning begins. Limbs are sawed off and clipped to allow maximum sunlight into the growing structure. Pruning allows the tree to produce larger, better colored, higher quality and more valuable fruit.
Spring
April is the time to prepare for spring planting. Sometime around the beginning of May, the buds begin to swell. The brush from pruning is picked up or mulched back into the orchard soil. The average tree will bear fruit in 3 years, with full production coming in 8-10 years.
Summer
Summer is the time for pollination. Sunny mild days are needed during bloom to encourage strong bee activity. Apples need more than one variety of pollen for the cross-pollination that ensures good fruit set. Fruit size and firmness are affected by moisture in the month of July and August is the last growing month before the apples begin to ripen. Red apples need cool nights during harvest to trigger an enzyme which increases the amount of color or "blush."
Fall
Apples are hand picked beginning around the end of August up until the last of the fruit comes off near the end of October. Many apples are processed into sauces, pies, and jelly - or pressed into fresh cider and apple juice. Cider is a delightful by-product of apples not "pretty" enough for the fresh whole-apple market.
With the harvest complete, it is time to prepare again for winter.
For all the details on growing apples in Vermont click here.
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