PERSISTENT FRUIT // TAKING IT FURTHER // SCIONWOOD ORDERS OPEN

Hello to all my fellow Knights of Pomona and tree devotees around the globe. HAPPY NEW YEAR, bon hiver, & good tidings. I am taking a BIG BIG breath of relief after a long growing season, which concluded with several months of fast-paced harvest work, culminating with the PomEx 6, CiderDays, and the wonderful marathon of fruit archiving that follows. It’s that time of year when the cooler gets cleared out of all those ethylene-producing APPLES and we start to fill it with buckets of beautiful scionwood from our favorite varieties for the promise of MORE apple trees!

For 2026, I have updated some of the varieties being offered, as I have newly matured topworks for several varieties like Muscadet d’Haydenville, Jean’s Russet, and Erie’s Bellybutton, which will provide higher quality scionwood than ever before. I also have added a new (old) pear variety to the catalogue this year: Dearborn Seedling !

Originally from Massachusetts ca. 1818, was once very widely planted for market use, being one of the most desirable pear varieties in America, both for its fruit and tree-growth qualities. It was thought to be completely extinct until very recent fruit exploration efforts by Sean Williams, with corroboration from Joseph Postman at USDA-Corvallis, confirmed the existence of a surviving (thriving) tree in Illinois, from which scionwood has been circulated for conservation efforts. I have one highly productive tree in my test orchard, and, although it’s not a novel seedling, I am offering scionwood from this one because it’s nothing short of a triumph for fruit conservation, and it is one badass pear. See below from Beach:

” Once a favorite, Dearborn is now nearly lost to cultivation, and few or no nurserymen grow the trees. It is too good a variety to be lost, however, because of splendid fruit- and tree-characters. The fruits ripen early and are of good quality…. the pears run small, but they are attractive in shape and color. The trees are almost flawless, and therefore are well adapted to home orchards where fruits cannot receive the care of skilled hands. Besides being almost free from blight, the trees are hardy, vigorous, and very productive. The variety has many valuable qualities for a summer pear in home orchards. “

from S.A. Beach – Pears of New York Vol. II (1921)

WINTER BLEW IN STRONG & EARLY

In our temperature valley floor microclimate here in the CT river valley, we had an unusually early, strong and harsh start to Winter. For much of the last decade, we have not enjoyed consistent temperatures below-freezing & consistent snow cover until mid-January or even later. Even still, it is now more common than not to see several deep-freeze-to-full-thaw cycles before the new year. Because of this somewhat anomalous weather pattern, the beginning of consistent sub-freezing temperatures coincided with the last part of the apple harvest. Though it brought some challenges to the end of this growing season, it was a terrific opportunity to observe and think more about the nature of winter apples.

For starters, I am grappling with the term winter apple. Seeking a definition, we have the following from FEDCO:

“Winter apples ripen mid to late fall, store well, and reach their best flavor after weeks, or even months, of storage.”

– FEDCO Trees division

We are instructed that the “winter apple” designation refers not only to their generally late Fall ripening but rather their post-harvest maturation; that they are best suited to eating in Winter after a long period of storage for the biology of the fruit itself to mature enough that the flavor improves and reaches its peak. This is an undeniably useful and wonderful category of varieties, one of my favorites. Many of the characteristics necessary of an apple to be a good Winter apple, such as hard or dense flesh, high sugar and/or acidity to prevent rapid decay, and thick skin for perseverance against pest damage and general growth issues, also mean that many of them also make good cider apples. This designation creates represents a pretty enormous group of Fall and late-Fall ripening fruit.

Take for an obvious example, any known heirloom apple with ‘Winter’ in its name. Chances are, they probably have some or all of these characteristics: Scott Winter, Winter Banana, Calville blanc d’hiver, Dudley Winter, White Winter Pearmain, etc. Many more without ‘winter’ in their name fit this category as well: Baldwin, Blue Pearmain, GoldRush, Cherryfield, Cranberry Pippin, the list goes on and on. I love these apples, and many of them I find to be extraordinarily well-suited to growing in this region. That said, I find that their classification as simply “winter apples,” has significant shortcomings. What ties them together concerns itself only with the fruit and its handling. It doesn’t say anything of the way the trees behave when the attributes of winter weather come into play. If significant, sustained cold comes occurs in late October, many of these apples will have already fallen and begun to decay on the orchard floor. As a leading example Scott Winter, for all its strengths, ripens fairly early in October and has a somewhat thin skin and flesh less dense than Baldwin and many others. It is no less an apple once in the root cellar, but as a tree, I find this is, if not a shortcoming, certainly a key difference between it and varieties more adapted cold on the tree. Granny Smith, Lady, and Hauer Pippin are another three (of thousands!) commonly grown apples that are known to hang onto the tree after a few frosts. In some climates, they can be picked as late as Christmas day. Unsurprisingly, they also have the fruit characteristics that many less frost/freeze tolerant apples have from a post-harvest perspective. I would consider frost/freeze tolerant apples a completely different subcategory of Winter apples for what they are and how they should be used! Even more interesting to me is the group of apple varieties that takes it even further; those that have all of the aforementioned characteristics, but are even more specifically adapted to winter conditions insofar as the fruit, while hanging on the tree, not only can tolerate, but requires that type of significant, often sustained cold, in order to ripen properly, and thereafter will hold and be sound for an extended period of months.

To me, it seems that we should have [at least] three separate classification terms for Winter apples!

• Long keepers – designation for fruit’s excellent storage qualities only. (i.e. Scott Winter, Black Oxford, Roxbury Russet, etc.)
• Frost/freeze-tolerant apples – designation of fruit’s excellent storage qualities, and the tree’s ability to hang and maintain fruit soundness through some hard frost and sustained freezing temperatures, although they can be considered physiologically mature (ripe) before the onset of such conditions. (i.e. Goldrush, Granny Smith, King David, Franklin Cider, etc.)
• Freeze-adapted apples – designation of fruit’s excellent storage qualities, and the tree’s requirement of significant frost and freezing temperatures for fruit to become physiologically mature, convert all starches, develop flavor compounds, and maintain fruit soundness through hard frost and sustained freezing temperatures. (i.e. Ed’s Winter, Manure Pit, January Gold, Rainbow Russet, many more to be documented…)

TAKING IT FURTHER INTO WINTER – THE ‘BEYOND’ TIER OF WINTER APPLES

The last group is certainly the rarest and most precious of these Winter apples. I want to highlight these apples, and describe an apple which has embodied the archetype of this sort of fruit for me. In order for an apple to be truly freeze-adapted, it must possess several key traits. The flesh must be quite dense. Consider that apple flesh is made of individual particles of cellulose, pectin, and water-rich juice. The amount of space between each individual cell in the flesh dictates how dense the flesh feels. Apples that have very large spaces between each cell, like Wolf River, feel airy and light, often tender when you bite them. Apples with very dense flesh, like GoldRush or Baldwin or Roxbury Russet, have very little space between the cells. The space between contains apple juice, which is mostly water. Recall middle school physics class: ice EXPANDS when frozen. The freezing itself forces the structure of the apple flesh to collapse because the individual cells of flesh are being separated from one another. This is why apples with softer flesh that undergo a hard freeze event end up tasting mealy or mushy, even if the flavor is still good. They will often soon thereafter begin to decay and decompose. Apples with the densest flesh of all are able to freeze solid, where there is so little space between the cells of flesh that they aren’t really compromised much with that type of freezing.

These freeze-adapted varieties also have very high sugars. Ice cider makers and aficionados, as well as maple sugarers understand well that the sugar content in water helps dictate the freezing content of an aqueous solution. Put simply, the pure water in apple flesh freezes at 32°F. However, the sugars and acids present in apples influence the freezing point downwards considerably. An apple measuring 15°Bx will freeze completely solid at 32°F. An apple measuring 24°Bx, however, will not freeze solid at that temperature. In fact, the freezing point of an aqueous solution with that specific level of sucrose is 29°F. Add to that the influence of acids in the flesh, and the hardness of the flesh, and you have apples which can remain sound into the low or mid 20s. There are many times that I take an apple off the tree in the dead of winter when the ambient air temperature is well below freezing, and am able to squeeze liquid juice out of the fruit. Freeze-adapted fruit will have sugars measuring, at a minimum, 19°Bx, but more likely in the direction of 20°-28°Bx or higher. This must be coupled with a tough, thick skin. If the skin is to be compromised by the action of freezing, or by way of birds, insects, or other critters, little holes in the skin will allow water from rain, snow, and frost to penetrate the apple flesh, thereby diluting the rich sugar content of the flesh, allowing the expansion of ice crystals to slowly destroy the fruit.

Another trait that invariably comes with the third classification of freeze-adaptation in apples is persistent fruit. If you’re familiar with this term, it is most likely because heard it associated with ornamental crabapples. Persistence refers to the tendency of fruit to hang onto the tree well into the winter months, not abscising, or, separating from the tree) until the following Spring. This trait is highly valuable for wildlife, offering late season nutrition to many bird species, as well as deer, porcupine, and others. It is normally associated with varieties of crabapple that produce very small fruits, so small that humans generally do not, and cannot use them for food or cider. It is relatively unusual for a large-fruited specimen to have persistent fruit with only a few well-documented varieties being known to have this trait to any extent (White Winter Pearmain, Rome Beauty*). Genetic material from wild crabapples and ornamental crabapples are responsible for carrying this trait. Foragers that encounter wild apple trees which are either interspecific hybrids (M. domestica x any of the following: M. coronaria, angustifolia, baccata, zumi, ioensis, fusca, floribunda, etc.) or hybrids with other wild apples that contain genetic material from these crabapple species (i.e. GoldRush, which has a complex parentage including M. floribunda), may find that the trait of fruit persistence has been inherited. The genetic influence of crabapples seems to be critical to the presentation of this form of extreme cold-hardiness.

STORY TIME: THE ED’S WINTER TIMELINE

2016: 10 years ago, my partner Rachel and I embarked on a scionwood harvest mission to an area in the Sandwich Range of the White Mountains that is home to what I still consider to be one of my favorite populations of wild apple trees. This was in March 2016. We had intended to harvest scionwood from the original seedling (mother) trees of Thornton Brass & Thornton Pearls. We hadn’t explored all of the other wild apple trees of that valley yet, and of the few which we’d sampled fruit from the Fall preceding this, only those two seemed worthy of propagation to us. When we arrived, we were shocked to see this sight:

To see any apple tree at all loaded with fruit in late March is unusual. This seemed peculiar to us. We figured we ought to try one or two and see if they still tasted good. Squeezing the wizened fruits to release their juice to our mouths, the juice ran crystal clear from the surface of the fruit. The flavor was incredible. Phenomenal, even. Electrifying; fruity and rich, notes of pomegranate kernels and lime zest, chilled icy cold by the Winter air. Without hesitation, we collected scionwood from this, third wild apple tree, as well. It has taken me these past 10 years to really understand and unpack this experience. Ed’s Winter fits squarely into the subcategory of Winter apples that I’ve referred to as ‘freeze-adapted’ varieties.

When we tasted the fruit from Ed’s Winter in the Fall of 2015, we were not blown away. Seemed good, but a little boring. Acidity tasted a bit thin, tannins were more rude than intriguing, and didn’t have any ‘wow’ factor in the same way that the tree’s neighbors did. We overlooked it. A decade later, I believe that this was because the fruit was simply not fully ripe yet. Flash forward 6 years later, Ed’s Winter has been grafted hundreds of times, at home orchards throughout the region and at two commercial orchard trial sites.

2022: The first ex-situ fruits come from trees grafted at one of my trial sites in the Hudson Valley. Impressively, they measured some very impressive stats. 20.5°Bx, picked off the tree on November 5th in a commercial orchard setting, no irrigation and no fertilizer. The fruits were eaten fresh, or sold or blended into cider within a month of harvest. I was impressed and in love with this variety. Many good flavor notes carried over successfully, and these grafted trees appeared to be bearing annually and efficiently. Great reviews from customers of this particular farm, many folks saying ‘it is the best apple I’ve ever tasted,’ and rave reviews from their staff. Good news, but we did not yet understand how much better the fruit would have gotten if we let it hang on the tree even longer.

2023 – The following season – an Ed’s Winter tree I grafted and planted at my own orchard in Hadley produced a modest handsome crop of fruit. This was a big deal because this is the first time that an Ed’s Winter ex-situ grafted tree was grown in a 100% no-spray orchard. It seemed to thrive in the conditions of our Hadley site, growing au naturale. Anxiously awaiting harvest, I began tasting the fruit for maturity beginning in October, and ended up harvesting the balance of the tree’s crop in early November, the same as the year prior in the Hudson Valley. One sample fruit I picked, shown here, was the prince charming of the whole harvest. Flavor came through great, more tannins than the fruits produced at the commercial trial sites. High sugars, 23°Bx, and blended into cider. I began developing a theory about this variety’s production of tannins and the environmental factors including the application of fungicide, thinning (or not), and elevation/exposure to wind…we have yet to prove this theory. The entire harvest was blended into cider. Still, I had no idea how long the fruit would hang on the tree if allowed. The mother tree holding its crop into March was still just a memory, and an inkling in my head.

2025 –This past year, due to the rigors of farm life, the perennial challenges of husbandry (late Fall grazing of sheep during short daylight hours), and an enormous crop of Golden Russets which captured the better part of our harvest labor, the same Ed’s Winter tree went unpicked, and largely unnoticed, until very, VERY late in the season. I had last taken notes on this tree during August ’25, when these fruits were still little green golf balls. I ended up passing by the tree on December 8th, for a reason completely unrelated to harvesting fruit. And, to my complete delight & amazement, I saw this sight. Between late October and early December of this year, we saw significant wintry weather. Nights consistently in the teens and 20s, many days barely cresting 32°F. There weren’t any fruits on the ground under the tree, and the juvenile tree was clearly still hanging onto the whole lot of it. I excitedly tasted the fruit. This is certainly the best it’s ever been; flesh still dense, crisp, juicy, no inkling of granularity or mealiness. Flavors bursting with its signature pomegranate and key lime, with tannins moderated, tamed to palatable levels, but with its underlying sweetness finally on display in the form of jammy persimmon notes, encased in amber. Pretty incredible moment for me! Brix measured at 23.5°.

I’ve concluded that this wasn’t an unusual year for Ed’s Winter, based on any environmental or cultural conditions. It was simply the first year since that original encounter with the mother tree that we completely left Ed to its own devices until long after we consider apples to still be sound and pickable when left on the tree.

That day, I picked a 1/2 peck bag to share with friends and colleagues, but let the remaining fruit hang on the tree, just to see how long it would stay, and how it would hold up. At the time of posting this, it still has the same amount of fruit on the tree. It isn’t budging! This photo, shown at right, is the tree on January 4th, 2026. The fruit is still colorful. They’re not ice cubes, still tender and can be eaten out of hand. They have only a slight give to the flesh. If I had a whole orchard of these trees, I would probably make some crazy good juice out of them if pressed in January.

I love Ed’s Winter. I am convinced it is of the hardiest provenance and constitution. It is unable-to-be-fucked-with. You should try growing one.

There are many other apples that Fall into this category of freeze adapted fruit. Manure Pit, which was first described in POMOLOGICAL SERIES VOL. 2 (p. 59), is another one of these freeze-adapted apples.

Do you love winter apples yet?? Get out there and explore a bit, and see if you find any persistent fruit on feral fruit trees near you! You may just be pleasantly surprised to find a little sweetness in deep Winter.

GNARLY PIPPINS MERCH RESTOCK

Heads up knights ! All colors and sizes of Gnarly Pippins merch have been restocked ! The ORIGINAL LOGO TEE is back and better than ever. I’ve brought back all the classic colors: natural cotton, black, sage green, and the limited edition safety orange is back in all sizes S-M-L-XL-XXL. For the cold weather knights out there, we have a full restock of GO HARD, KNIGHTS OF POMONA hoodies. Rep the team colors and show your devotion to fruit and fruit trees with one of these tees. Proceeds help keep this work going, and any MERCH sales made in the month of January will be donated to the Pioneer Valley Workers Center, a fantastic organization that builds power among the working class residents of our region, centering dignity and rights for low-wage & immigrant workers in our region, who are essential to our agricultural and blue-collar communities. Please run it up so I can make a nice donation to the Workers center ! KNIGHTS OF POMONA show up for our fellow human beings regardless of race, background, and citizenship status. We take care of each other, and we recognize the need for strong and deep community organizing at this time.

PRUNING CLASSES!

WINTER 2026 PRUNING CLASSES

REGISTRATION IS NOW LIVE for all 3 of the pruning classes I’m instructing this year. In the past, I have only taught introductory pruning classes. I love teaching people the fundamentals of pruning with purpose, but I also hope to be able to bridge our learning together into some of the areas of study that introductory classes seldom venture. So, this year I’m trying something a little different. I will be teaching 3 courses on 3 consecutive Sundays.

February 15th: Pruning 101: PRUNING WITH PURPOSE – FOUNDATIONS OF FRUIT TREE PRUNING

**This 101 session is sponsored by HHCD and registration is offered though this link! rather than the Gnarly Pippins shop**

February 22nd: Pruning 201: PRUNING OUTSIDE THE BOX – INTEGRATING THE LOOP AND PRETZEL METHOD

March 1st: Pruning 301: PRUNING B.O.A.Ts (Big Old Apple Trees)

Each class will delve a little deeper than the last one into more complex and advanced terrain of pruning. Whether you register for 1 class or all 3, you will be a confident pruner ready to work any fruit tree or orchard you encounter. Take all 3 courses and you will be dubbed a KNIGHT OF POMONA ! Link below for registration and course details!