Thank you Emily

Just as I am lamenting about the dearth of fresh produce this autumn compared with other years, my lovely neighbour, Emily, brings a huge bag of apples from her trees.  They are not pretty, many of the fruits have scab and all are much smaller than usual.  But since we have had no more than a handful of our own apples this year, they are very welcome indeed.  When Doc came home from work and smelled apple and cinnamon crumble, Emily was flavour of the week!  If she had not already toddled off home, he would have danced a 'Strictly' number with her......

There were a few Bramleys in the bag which are of course the King (why not Queen?) of cooking apples and these are always on top of my list for baking.  The rest of the apples were Arthur Turner cooking apples which is also an older variety.  This is a heavy cropping apple and it makes a good sauce.  It is a also a good baking apple and cooks down to a soft, richly flavoured puree.  The ripe fruits do not keep well but they can picked from September through to November.  They look attractive too, with blushing pink-brown highlights over the green skin.

Arthur Turner was raised by Charles Turner of Slough. Interestingly, in 1912, when this tree was called Turner's Prolific, it won an Award of Garden Merit for its flowers alone. It was renamed Arthur Turner in 1915, after a relative who sadly died in the first World War.

The fact that Emily's north-facing garden has produced a better crop of apples than our south-west facing orchard, is also interesting.  I think it is because we grow different varieties which flower at different times.  If a tree flowers and then it rains, the bees cannot pollenate the trees as efficiently.  If there are frosts then the fruits cannot set either.  

So, if you are planning to grow apples, it is a good idea to grow as many different varieties as you can.  Trained cordons, espaliers and fans enable you to grow lots of different apples, very compactly.  You also ensure a steady supply of fruits with some apples which can be eaten now and others which will store right through to spring.  We have a row of ten, young cordons along the trellis of Mr Macgregors garden.  Doc has trained them very successfully but the last two cold winters and this awful summer have slowed down their progress.  We are hoping they will come to fruition next season!