Thousands of named apples exist, but a high percentage of them are unsuitable for regions with severe winter temperatures. Some apples, although hardy, are difficult to grow or are unproductive.
Having moved to an area where temperatures can drop to minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit, I quickly learned that many apples wouldn’t put up with the frigid winters. My passion became to learn about the cultivars and rootstocks that would.
A Bite of Apple History
The story of the cultivated apple begins where the vast steppes of Central Asia buckle against the rocky slopes of the Tian Shan mountains. Apples grew from low-lands, where summers are hot and dry and winters cool, to high mountain valleys, where summers are cool and winters bitterly cold. This diversity of habitats created a diversity of genetics.
Apples came to North America with the earliest immigrants. By the late 19th century, orchardists and farmers were growing hundreds, if not thousands, of named cultivars across the continent. In northern areas, however, harsh winter conditions killed many of these trees.
A series of imports had a huge impact on the apple mix for the north. In the 1880s, apples that originated in the colder areas of Russia were brought to Canada and the northern states. Names such as ‘Antonovka’ quickly became household names because of their hardiness and tenacity.
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