The Heirloom Orchardist has assembled a list of antique apple varieties, and found suppliers to make these classic heirloom apple trees available to you at affordable prices. Many of these varieties have documented histories...others do not. When known, we provide the place of origin, and dates.
Many apples need "fruiting buddies" to ensure good pollination, so check the sponsor site descriptions to be sure that your trees will complement each other nicely! Also, be sure your choices are appropriate to your hardiness zone.
_____________________________________________________
Arkansas Black originated in Benton County, Arkansas around 1870. It's a presumed seedling of Wine Sap. This is a hardy, late maturing, heirloom variety. It has a wonderful deep purplish color, with a coarse texture and very tart flavor. 
Crisp, juicy, yellow fleshed. Best used for fresh eating and sauce, pies, baking, & cider blending. A late season apple.
Purchase Arkansas Black Apple Tree
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
_____________________________________________________
Ashmead’s Kernel originated in the Gloucester area of England from seed planted by a Dr. Ashmead around 1700. This Heirloom Orchardist hopes Dr. Ashmead was an extremely handsome chap. Because his apple is, well, ugly. Ashmead’s Kernel is a yellowish russet apple, medium size, golden-brown skin and somewhat lumpy. Yup, I said lumpy. But when you bite in, watch out … this apple explodes with a champagne-sherbet flavor infused with orange blossom. Wow. The unusual flavor has made this lumpy russet a favorite for 300 years. Flesh is dense and sugary.
Purchase Ashmead's Kernel Apple Tree
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
_____________________________________________________
Braeburn was first discovered growing from a volunteer seedling found in New Zealand in the 1950’s. It's presumed to be a natural cross between Lady Hamilton and Granny Smith. Braeburn is exceptionally crisp and juicy, with a rich, full blend of sweet-tart flavor. It has an attractive 'bi-color' (red with green under-striping) skin. It's great for salads or with mild cheeses, and holds its shape when it's cooked.
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
____________________________________________________
An English apple, Bramley’s Seedling has a nicely documented provenance. As a young girl, Mary Ann Brailsford grew the first tree from pips she planted in her cottage garden in Southwell, Nottinghamshire, UK. The cottage (and tree) was purchased by a local butcher, Matthew Bramley in 1846. About a decade later, a local nurseryman named Henry Merryweather asked if he could take scions from the tree. Bramley agreed, but insisted that the apples bear his name. The first recorded sale of a Bramley was noted in Merryweather's accounts on October 31, 1862. The Bramley must be planted in the company of two pollinators for all three trees to fruit. This apple is considered the best of all cooking apples. It is slightly tart, and holds up well when baked.
Purchase Bramley's Seedling Apple Tree
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
_____________________________________________________
Cameo was discovered in the 1980's in a Dryden, Washington orchard of Red Delicious apples. It has a firm texture and a savory sweet-tart snap which is perfect for fresh eating. Cameo displays multiple colors (bright red striped over creamy orange), and holds its shape well when cooked. Great for pies and sauces. An ideal compliment to a fruit or fresh green salad.
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
_____________________________________________________
Cortland was developed at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva in 1898. It has very white crisp flesh that doesn’t brown quickly. A good salad apple, a bit sweeter than McIntosh. It displays a “flush of crimson against a pale yellow background, sprinkled with short, dark red stripes and gray-green dots.”
Purchase Cortland Apple Tree
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
____________________________________________________
Cox Orange Pippin is known as the most famous of all English eating apples. It is said to have originated on or about 1830 from seed of the Ribston Pippin at Colnbrook Lawn, near Slough, Bucks, England. It was first grown by a retired brewer and horticulturalist named Richard Cox. By the 1850’s, the variety had been introduced for sale by a Mr. Charles Turner, and was grown commercially in England from the 1860’s. Today, 
it’s best suited for a home orchard. This heirloom takes on an orange tinge when ripe. It has a juicy, nutty taste and firm flesh. It’s a good variety for all around use; in cooking, juicing and eating fresh.
Purchase Cox Orange Pippin Apple Tree
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
____________________________________________________
Fuji was developed at Tohuku Research Station in Morioka, Japan. First brought to light from New Zealand in the 1980s. It's an aromatic and juicy apple, with a spicy, crisp sweetness. An exceptional eating apple for those with a “sweet tooth.” Some think the flavor of this cultivar improves with age.
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
_____________________________________________________
Gala originates from the 1920s, when orchardist J.H Kidd crossed a Golden Delicious with his own Kidd's Orange Red. Since then, a Gala time’s been had by all (sorry, couldn’t help it).
Gala has a bouquet of juicy, sweet flavor contained in its dense, yellow flesh. An early-season apple, it is not large, so it's terrific for snacks. Gala is at its best when grown locally, and in season. It's great for a home orchard.
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
_________________________________________________
Golden Delicious: Andrew Mullins discovered this stray tree in his apple orchards in 1905. Nine years later, Stark Brothers bought propagation rights and named it "Golden Delicious," as a companion to their Red Delicious. Sweet and fragrant, the lightly textured green/gold skin of the Golden Delicious covers a crisp flesh. Great for fresh-eating and in salads (the flesh stays white longer than many other cultivars). Great for apple sauces, apple butter, apple pies, and a good choice for apple cider. Yup, that covers it … Perfect apple.
Purchase Golden Delicious Apple Tree
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
____________________________________________________
Does Granny Smith need a description? Legend says that Marie Ana Smith of Australia, carelessly tossed some French crabapples into her garden, back in the 1860s. The rest is apple history. A crisp juicy variety for those who enjoy a burst of tangy-tartness. With a firm crunch, Grannies are best eaten fresh, crisp and cold, either as snacks or in salads.
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
____________________________________________________
The Gravenstein was introduced to western North America (Sonoma County California?) in the early 19th century, perhaps by Russian fur traders. The Gravenstein apple is considered by many to be one of the best all-around apples with a sweet, tart flavor and is especially good for baking and cooking. It is picked early, in July and August. But it has a variable ripening time, and does not keep well, so it isn’t grown commercially. The skin is a delicately waxy yellow-green with crimson spots and reddish lines. Red Gravensteins display more red, and are considered a sport rather than a true variety.
Now over 50 years old,
Honeycrisp was produced from a 1960 cross of Macoun and Honeygold, as part of the University of Minnesota apple breeding program to develop winter hardy cultivars with high fruit quality.
The Honeycrisp apple is exceptionally crisp and juicy. With a cream colored coarse flesh, the flavor ranges from mild and well-balanced to strongly aromatic.
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
____________________________________________________
The first McIntosh apple grew from a seedling tree discovered in about 1811, by John McIntosh (1777-1846) in Dundas County, Ontario. McIntosh is known by its attractive dark red crimson colors, contrasted with bright white flesh. 
The flavor is generally sweet, but with a refreshing acidity and crunchy bite.
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
_____________________________________________________
Mutsu (Crispin) was developed in Japan from a 1930 cross between Golden Delicious and Indo, a Japanese seedling. It was introduced to the United States in 1948. Mutsu's flavor and appearance is described as "sweet, honeyed, with crisp, juicy flesh" in "The New Book of Apples: The Definitive Guide to Over 2,000 Varieties" (Morgan & Richards). Also known as Crispin, its skin is yellow with a slight brownish flush, and the flesh is white to pale yellow.
Purchase Mutsu (Crispin) Apple Tree
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
____________________________________________________
Northern Spy was discovered about 1800 in East Bloomfield, New York. It was saved by cutting scion(s) from the sprouts of a seedling that was dying, then grafted on Connecticut stock. This apple’s white flesh is crisp and mildly sweet with a rich, aromatic subacid flavor. It’s noted for high vitamin C content, and its juicyness. When recalling the apples of her youth, writer Bertha Damon said this about Northern Spy: “To remember the old-style Northern Spy with its thin skin and aromatic pungency is to set the mouth a-dribble. Housekeepers did not like the Spy for drying because it was so juicy that when dried ‘it all went away.’ It was the most luscious and gushingly juicy of all apples…” (A Sense of Humus, 1943)
Red Delicious derives from a volunteer seedling growing in an Iowa fence row. It was discovered about 1870, and improved by the Stark Nursery Company. Some feel the Red Delicious is overly sweet, with a simple flavor. But since its origin dates to the late 1800's, it's an heirloom. Its deep, red color and classic heart shape has made it one of the most easily recognized apple cultivars.
Spartan has a place on the Heirloom Orchardist’s list by being the first (or thought to be the first) “new” variety developed as the result of a formal scientific breeding program. It was created in the 1920’s at the Canadian Apple Research Station in Summerland, British Columbia. But Spartan’s parentage is a mystery. One parent (McIntosh) is known. The other parent was long thought to be the Newtown Pippin – but genetic testing has put this in question. Spartan is an excellent apple for a small heirloom orchard. It is old enough to be called “old”, has an interesting background story, is easy to grow and it produces a reliable crop. It is very much a “McIntosh style” apple, small with a bright crimson skin and white flesh.
Purchase Spartan Apple Tree
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
____________________________________________________
The famous
Spitzenberg apple was discovered in the late 1700s by an early Dutch settler of that name. It was found at the settlement of Esopus, on the Hudson River, in Ulster County, New York. Thus it’s known as the Esopus Spitzenberg. It was rumored to be Thomas Jefferson's favorite apple. The flavor is truly aromatic in a way that is not found in many other apple varieties, the flesh is a buttery dense yellow, and there is a rich sharpness which is often characteristic of high quality dessert apples. Like many heirlooms, this apple will require some attention.
Winesap (Wine Sap) is one of the oldest apples grown in North America (and at one time one of the most popular). It dates back to the colonial era. This heirloom is a very popular winter keeper with a tart, rich, wine-like flavor. Deep glossy red, overlaid with reddish purple stripes. The flesh is firm and crisp. A great cider apple, a sauce made without first peeling the fruit is a lovely pinkish color. John J. Thomas said in my 1849 issue of "The American Fruit Culturist" that it’s one of the best apples for baking.
The above link will redirect you to our sponsor e-commerce site.
__________________________________________________ 
__________________________________________________
Back to The Heirloom Orchardist.
The Heirloom Orchardist's Recommended Apple Trees
