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UK Apple Varieties - Guide and Master List!
UK Apple Varieties - Guide and Master List!
There are, and this is no exaggeration, over 30,000 different varieties of apples today. There are estimated to be more than 50 varieties of Red Delicious. Red Delicious is one of the older apple varieties, discovered as a natural variant in Peru, Iowa in 1880. However, of those 30,000 apple varieties, only about 30 are used and globally traded commercially, and about 13 varieties make up the bulk (72%) of European commerce.
Skip to the guide: We have a complete guide top the top 100 apple varieties grown and sold in the UK and US on this page.
Traditional British Apple Varieties
Bramley - People gush over this traditional apple with a dedication that borders on mania. It's basically a granny smith type, a
higher acid content and lower sugar apple, with a stronger, more tangy taste. Bramley's are considered to be an ideal cooking apple. - Charles Ross
- Crispin
- Early Victoria
- Early Worcester
- Ellisons Orange
- Epicure
- Gibsons Scarlet
- Golden Spire
- Greensleaves
- Howgate Wonder
- Ingrid Marie
- James Grieve
- Jonagored
- Jupiter
- Katy
- Orleans Reinette
- Peasgood Nonsuch
- Red Gravenstein
- Red Victoria
- Rev W. Wilks
- Ribston Pippin
- Rosemary Russett
- Spartan
- Sturmer Pippin
- Sunset
- Superb
- Tydermans Late Orange
- Warners King
- Winston
On the continent, the top3 apple varieties, by acreage planted are
- Golden Delicious has the largest portion (16.3%) and is especially popular in Italy, Spain and France,
- Jonagold at 9.7 % (in Germany and Poland);
- Gala on 8.6 % of the area, mainly in France, Italy and Spain.
But Fuji, Honeycrisp and even newer varieties like Cameo, Envy and Ambrosia are trending upwards. You may be surprised to learn It is relatively easy for orchards to change its apple varieties. They simply prune the tree down to about 5 feet or so tall and graft on the new variety to the remaining five or 10 limbs. Within 2 years they are back in production.
Some varieties popular only within a country, such as:
- Champion, Gloster and Idared in Poland
- Elstar and Jonagored in Germany and
- Red Delicious in Italy
New varieties such as Fuji, bred in Japan, and Pink Lady (in New Zealand and Australia), a club variety bred in the 1970s, are becoming more popular in Europe. However, Pink Lady was not yet included in the variety list of the European survey in 2007.
Guide to apple varieties at the grocer's
We have a complete guide top the top 100 apple varieties grown and sold in the UK and US on this page.