Red Delicious are Ready!

UPDATED FRIDAY, SEPT 25TH for apple variety availability.

Red Delicious

Red Delicious are good for eating. (Not for cooking use.)  I'm sure many of you are familiar with them from cafeteria lunches growing up!  Right off the tree, they will be much more crunchy than you are normally use to.  

Other Apple Update:

Jonagold:  Lots and lots.  Prime picking time!

Golden Delicious: Lots and lots.  Prime picking time also!

Melrose:  Main row is done, but MANY trees in the older orchard area.  We marked each Melrose tree in the older section with hot pink ribbon so you can find them.  Just look for hot pink!  Still very firm and crunchy.

Gala:  A small amount left.  Not as crunchy but will make a great tasting applesauce right now.

Ruby Jon: Done.

Liberty:  Done.

Honeycrisp:  Done.

Coming up Next:  Rome, Braeburn and Fuji.  Getting closer but still need to ripen more.

Our apple festival is on Saturday, Oct 10, from 10am-2pm this year!! 

We will have applesauce tasting, apple variety tasting, tractors for the kids and adults to climb on, Gator rides, apple crafts and some games.  All free!   Come check it out and bring some friends!

Golden Delicious and Liberty Apples are Ready!

Golden Delicious are Ready!

Golden Delicious is one of those very well-known apples.  Sweet and Mild flavor with a nice crunch.  Great for eating, pies and applesauce.  We have 3 full rows of these plus many, many trees in the older random section of the orchard.  If you want help finding them in the older section, just ask on of us! 

 

Liberty apples are also ready! 

Liberty apples are smaller size but with lots of flavor.  A very crispy apple that is tart sweet with a zing.  Liberty are amazing to grow because they are apple scab immune and resistant to mildew, cedar apple rust and fire blight.  That is pretty amazing for an apple!  I heard they are really good for drying, plus eating, pies and applesauce.  I read they are great for apple butter but I have never personally tried it.  Let me know if you do!  FYI, we have one row of these but they are planted every other tree with Honeycrisp.  They won't last long!

Other Apple Update:

Melrose- A decent amount on the main row and lots left on the random trees in the older section.  We can help you find them!

Jonagold- Lots and lots!

Gala- Still a decent amount left.  Still good eating but getting close to losing their crunch.  They would be really good for applesauce right now.  The little crispier ones are in the older section.  Again happy to show you those when you are out here.

Ruby Jon- Half of the row left.

Honeycrisp- Done.

Melrose and ALL rows of Jonagold are ready!

NOTE:  Apple availability updated FRIDAY, 9/11/15.  See below.

 

Thanks for the great Labor Day weekend!  So fun to be around all your enthusiastic attitudes!  Especially the couple who was going to go home and process 11 (Yes, 11! buckets of apples that afternoon into applesauce.)

Melrose are a great baking apple.  They keep their shape and flavor after baking.  It is a great apple for baking whole.  They are a nice eating apple too, especially if you let it sit for a bit after being picked.  Melrose are a cross between a Red Delicious and Jonathon apple.  Come try some if you never have before.

We have a row of Melrose, and we have some scattered trees in the older portion of the orchard.  Ask about those if you'd like them.

Because of the cooler weather, the Melrose have an extra beautiful color this year...just such a nice pink/red color. 

ALL Jonagold rows are now ripe for picking!  9 rows total.  Come pick your hearts out!  I talked about Jonagold more in a previous post but they are a great all-purpose apple.  Fantastic for everything!  Super crispy and a sweet/tart flavor.  Definitely a favorite of mine.

Other apple update:

Honeycrisp- Pretty much gone but if you look inside the tree, you will still find some small size ones.

Gala- 1/4 of each of the 2 rows is left.  Walk ALL the way to the far end.  Getting pretty ripe.  Still good for eating but losing it's crispiness some.  GREAT for applesauce at this point too.  We do have some random trees in the older part of the orchard too we can take you too.

Ruby Jon- Just opened these last week, so lots left.

Ruby Mac- Plan on these being gone by mid-day today (Friday).  Only a few buckets left.

Smoothies- Done

D'Anjou pears have all been sold.  Pears of all kinds are done for the season.

 

Up Next:

Golden Delicious should be up next.  Still a little too green and tart so I am holding out on those for awhile longer.

For those of you who bought some D'Anjou pears, I thought this was an interesting article about chilling and ripening pears successfully. 

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/gardening/node/413

Other Farm Happenings:

We just planted a new grass seed field last week, so we are irrigating that and waiting for it to sprout up!   Plus we still have a field of corn growing so we have to keep up with watering that.  It will be ready to harvest soon...our last crop to harvest for the season besides apples.  We have almost made it! :)

So a little calmer pace around the farm, but of course still many small detail things to keep up with.