Botany Photo of the Day

Mmmm... a definite favourite! As is Rubinette!!
Can't wait 'till tomorrow!!

Oh boy. Wish I lived closer; I'd be there for sure. I really miss the old varieties that I grew up with in Pennsylvania such as Winesap and Macintosh right off the tree instead of after months in either transit or storage.

My English mother used to rave about these apples! I finally managed to try one when I was in London in 2006: delicious! It would be fun to grow some on our farm. A beautiful apple.

You should read Pollan's "Botany of Desire." He gives a great discussion of the apple.

Ah! as an Anglo Canadian who sadly now lives in New Jersey you made me hungry with this pic but I'm off for a visit to blighty soon so will make the most of those Cox's when I'm there.... Also some of the other fabulous varieties like Peasgood Nonsuch. Mmmm.

Sounds delicious! One of my favorite commercially-available apples here in the United States is Gala, and since this is a grandparent of Gala, there's a good chance I'd like this one also. I wonder if the trees are available in the US? Living here in the desert Southwest, mold is less of a problem than it might be elsewhere.

This is so cool, they look delishious!

right off the trees of my memories

i love the old apples now heritage

well me too it would seem

i grew up with claries apples
and golden delicious softer then the red

I love the paths these pages lead me to, including the non-botanical ones...
-- thanks, He Who Lives, for pointing me to the book
-- and thanks, Tina, for reminding me to finally dig up the meaning and origins of "blighty" -- I very much enjoy that term, it brings me a smile whenever I hear it, especially since I have British in-laws and the resulting connections to, and feeling for, things British.

Looks good!

I wish there was an apple farm/orchard in my area. It must taste great picked fresh off the tree.

Believe me, Lynne, Cox's Orange beats Gala hollow! As does its parent Kidd's Orange Red... my brother's favourite is Gravenstein, but for me: Kidd's Orange every time.
Gala? Nah.

Hi,

You can read more about the origin of this variety, its various names and its offspring at:

http://www.england-in-particular.info/orchards/o-cox.html

Also here is the small community park which celebrates this great little apple.

Enjoy!

Brian

Oh this apple is sooooo goooood. The picture makes me drooling! Here in Sweden it is a favourite at this time of the year with its spicy crunchy flesh.
We used to keep the smallest and most red to tie onto the Christmas tree and then on the 20ieth day after Christmas when we "threw" the tree out we feasted on the then rather mealy fruit. Such fond memories!
Gravensteiner is also a wonderful apple to both eat and to make the most delicious pies and apple crumbles.
Gala and the other pumped up new varieties are surely not in the same league.

Your picture brings back fond memories. Thank you. A handful of grocery stores in Edmonton used to sell Cox but over the last few years I could not find any. I asked a fruit seller in the local Farmers Market to bring in some but she never did. The closest to satisfy my craving for this wonderful apple is Discovery - a seedling of Cox.
Thean

Yummy! :-)

A comment regarding Thean's observation.
Here in Sweden we can grow the most wonderful apples that develop their ultimate taste due to our long summers and crisp falls.
But going to the supermarkets you would not know this. There you can buy just "red" or "green" apples often from the other side of the world at a fraction of the cost of the "real" thing.

C. orange pippin, is the best apple for mincemeat, hands down!
It is available in the fall at farmer's market's.

There are a couple of heirloom apple nurseries that offer it.

thank you brian i enjoyed your link

Hey, great!
It is bizarre to see something that is so common in our shops being lauded in countries that don't see it so often!

Cambree - check with your local county extension service for "you pick" farms and other info in your area. You might be surprised to learn that there are locally grown apples. I live in Alabama and we have them here.

"it is particularly susceptible to molding and other common problems": is this observation valid for Vancouver weather? Does it do better in dryer climates?
thanks
Pierre

Not a cooking apple - never! It's the perfect eating apple. I've lived in the United States for 40 years and never forgotten its perfect flavor and crunchy texture. Perhaps too small in size to succeed here?