Our Tree Varieties
Golden Russet
NEW this year: We will be planting a new variety of apple tree named Golden Russet. Although it's new to us, it has been cultivated since the early 1800s and has proven itself as a wonderful apple for making cider. We've chosen it to be used in our hard cider production as its high sugar content aids in the fermentation process.
True to its name, the fruit of these trees are golden with crisp, juicy flesh inside. They ripen from September to October.
Zestar! Apples
Zestar! apples are recognized for their remarkable, well-balanced, sweet but tart flavor and their juicy but crisp texture. Delight in their zest and savor a hint of brown sugar. These high-quality fruits are a favorite for fresh eating as well as cooking and baking.
Zestar! apples are an early season apple. They ripen on the tree from late August to early September. Zestar! lovers will also appreciate their exceptional extended storage life. They will maintain their sprightly flavor and keep their crisp texture in a refrigeration for up to 2 months. Zestar! apples were introduced by apple breeders at the University of Minnesota in 1999.
Honeycrisp Apples
Honeycrisp apples are notable for their explosive crisp texture and for sweet, mildly aromatic flavor. Due to the well-balanced flavor and exceptional cream-colored flesh, Honeycrisp are outstanding eaten fresh, cooked, or mixed in salads.
Honeycrisp apples are typically ripe and ready to harvest between September 15th and October 5th. They have an outstanding storage life of up to 7 months.
These apples are an exemplary development made by University of Minnesota apple breeders. They were named Minnesota’s State Fruit in 2006, and were ranked among the top 25 innovations of the decade in the 2006 Better World Report.
Haralson Apples
Haralson apples are known for their distinctive complex flavor and firm but juicy texture. They are incredibly satisfying and ideal for fresh eating, delicious in cooking, and are great when blended in ciders. They have a wonderful balance of sweetness compared to other apple varieties. Haralson apples ripen in late September to early October. They will store for up to 5 months in refrigeration.
These apples were introduced by the University of Minnesota in 1922, and have remained a Minnesota favorite ever since.
Fireside Apples
Firesides are recognized by their flaming red orange stripes, sweet flavor, and fine texture. They are generally large fruits and the bigger the better!
Firesides are good for fresh eating, in salads, and for baking. They ripen and are harvested in mid-October. University of Minnesota apple breeders introduced Firesides in 1943.
Sweet 16 Apples
Sweet Sixteen apples are unique for their sugarcane- like and spicy cherry flavor. Their exotic yellow flesh is crisp, very sweet and juicy. These apples are great eaten fresh, have a high dessert quality, and are well-blended in juice and cider. They ripen in mid- to late September and will store for 5 to 8 weeks.
University of Minnesota apple breeders introduced Sweet Sixteens in 1977.
Patton Pears
These late ripening pears are large, excellent eating quality fruit, and are soft, juicy and tender. We pick them in mid September. Named after CG Patten, the breeder who created it. It was introduced by Iowa State University in 1922.
Summer Crisp Pears
This tough and versatile variety was developed by the University of Minnesota in 1986. Very juicy; they can be eaten fresh or canned or used in baking. They ripen in mid-August—a refreshing summer treat but they can also be stored in a cooler for up to two months.
Toka Plums
Toka plums are also known as Bubble Gum plums. They are sweet and richly flavored with a reddish skin and apricot-colored flesh. They are a very good pollinator, produce a heavy crop and are hardy to -40ºF. They ripen in late August.
Black Ice Plums
Black Ice Plums are a large-fruited dessert plum, like those from California, yet they have superior winter hardiness, and thus can be grown in the mid-west. These blue-black plums have very juicy, sweet, yellow flesh. They ripen early in August. This variety was bred by Prof. Brian Smith of UW-River Falls.
Superior Plums
Superior plums are a red-blushed crimson fruit bursting with sweet, yellow flesh. They have a rich and full-bodied flavor and are great for eating fresh. They become ripe in mid to late August. This is a hardy Japanese-American hybrid
Chestnut Crab
Chestnut Crab is an annual bearer that produces 2" pale yellow crabapples with streaky red blushes and some russeting. Creamy white flesh is fine-grained and crisp, with a sweet, nut-like flavor that is great for fresh eating, cooking or making jellies and a favorite for cider. The Tree is vigorous and hardy and adapts well to different soil types. Developed at the University of Minnesota in 1946. Cold-hardy. Ripens in early September.
Liberty
Liberty is low-maintenance due to its natural disease resistance to apple scab, cedar apple rust, fire blight, and powdery mildew. Fruit has a yellow background with attractive red overtones, a crisp white flesh, and a harmonious sweet-tart taste. Perfect for fresh eating, cooking, canning or keeping – proper storage improves the flavor! Originates from Geneva, New York in 1955. Cold-hardy. Ripens in September. A licensed variety of Cornell University.
Golden Russet
Golden Russet is one of the most prized among apple connoisseurs. It is a medium-sized apple that is russeted bronze over greenish gold and speckled with white lenticels. The flesh is creamy and dense, yielding a rich, aromatic juice that is high in sugar and acid and low in tannin. Golden Russet is highly esteemed among cider makers for its ability to reliably produce excellent juice, and it is often used for single-variety ciders. Tasters often describe the flavor of Golden Russet as "nutty," but this doesn't even begin to capture the delightful intensity of its honeyed sweetness.