Jonathon, an heirloom classic

Honeycrisp has stolen the limelight lately (in regards to apple popularity) and Red Delicious' ubiquitous place on grocery store shelves is well entrenched, but it's the Jonathon apple that year after year quietly delivers apple goodness to those in the know.  Arguably the best apple for pies, its followers also rave about the sauce it makes and enjoy its tart flavor and crisp, juicy texture.  Over the last decade it has become less and less available in grocery stores as newer varieties (with large marketing budgets) push it into obscurity.  The good news is you can still pick Jonathon straight from the tree at our farm, and if you are not familiar with Jonathon, we invite you to the farm this weekend and encourage you to enjoy one of life's little pleasures, the Jonathon apple.

Apple Use Chart

Variety	Flavor/Texture	Pies	Baking	Sauce	Salads	Keeping Ability
Fuji	Sweet/Firm	Fair	Fair	Fair	Good	Excellent
Gala	Sweet/Crisp	Fair	Fair	Fair	Good	Fair
Golden Delicious	Sweet/Tender	Very Good	Very Good	Very Good	Good	Average
Golden Supreme	Sweet/Tender	Good	Good	Good	Good	Average
Goldrush	Very Tart/Firm	Very Good	Very Good	Good	Good	Excellent
Jonagold	Sweet/Tart	Very Good	Very Good	Very Good	Good	Average
Jonathon	Tart/Tender	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Good	Average
Honeycrisp	Sweet/Tart	Very Good	Good	Good	Good	Average
McIntosh	Juicy/Tart Tender	Fair	Fair	Good	Good	Fair
Melrose	Firm/Crisp Sweet/Tart	Very Good	Very Good	Very Good	Good	Good
Pixie Crunch	Sweet/Crisp	Fair	Fair	Fair	Good	Average
Red Cortland	Sweet/Tart Juicy/Tender	Fair	Fair	Good	Good	Fair
Red Delicious	Sweet/Crisp	Poor	Poor	Poor	Good	Average
Rome	Slightly Tart/Firm	Good	Good	Good	Good	Average
Suncrisp	Sweet/Tart Firm/Juicy	Very Good	Very Good	Good	Good	Very Good
Winesap	Firm/Tart	Very Good	Very Good	Good	Good	Very Good

 

Morse Road: Don't Even Think About It!

Morse Road is under construction until at least the end of September and we recommend avoiding it as you travel to the farm this fall.  Fortunately, an excellent alternative exists: take S.R. 161 east from the Columbus area to S.R. 310.  Turn right on S.R. 310 and head south approximately 1 1/2 miles to the intersection of Morse Road and 310.  At that point you've reached the farm!

Pixie Crunch: the new kid on the block

Pixie Crunch is a relatively new variety for our farm that we will be able to offer as u-pick for the first time this year.  As the name implies, it is a small to medium sized apple with sweet flavor and a very crisp texture.  Consider it the perfect lunchbox apple.  Customers who have sampled it over the last couple of seasons now ask for it by name, and we expect it to develop into one of our more popular varieties.  Stored properly in your refrigerator you can expect good quality through Christmas.  Quantities this year are limited.  Let us know what you think about Pixie, and please give us feedback if you bake with them or make sauce.

Honeycrisp U-Pick Price 2010

The quality of this year's honeycrisp crop is looking very good as we approach opening day.  Some people have inquired as to why the price has been increased this year to $25 compared to last year's price of $20 per bag, so here's the scoop:  Honeycrisp is the most highly demanded u-pick apple we grow, and our supplies are very limited relative to demand.  Couple that with the fact that it is perhaps the most challenging variety for us to grow well, and we decided a price increase was in order.  That being said, we understand that $25 for one-half bushel of apples may be beyond the budget of some folks, and at the same time, our price per half-bushel equates to approximately $1.25 per pound, a very reasonable and competitive price for quality Honeycrisp.  That's the scoop!

U-Pick 9/3 - 9/6

U-PICK SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEKEND (9/3-9/6), 9AM-6PM

Cool relief from the heat is predicted this weekend making it a great 
time for a trip to the farm! Here is a rundown of this weekend's u-pick 
schedule:

All u-pick apples are priced at $16 per twenty pound bag and $10 per 
ten pound bag. 

Gala:  The hot temperatures of the last week have advanced the 
maturity of the Gala considerably and consequently many of the Gala 
available for u-pick are past what we would call their "prime". We 
recommend trying them before you pick and picking as many as you 
can use within ten days to two weeks. Remember, apples keep best if 
stored in your refrigerator in a plastic bag with a few sprinkles of water 
to retain moisture. 

McIntosh  will have great flavor this weekend and will keep well. If you are a Mac fan this may be the weekend to get them, as they may be all picked by the end of the weekend. 

Jonathon  will also be available this weekend and is just at the
beginning of its ripening window. Expect to have Jonathon available for u-pick the next couple of weekends. 

Cider Season 2010

Some changes are in store for our cider during the 2010 season.  We have traditionally pressed our own cider, and over the past ten years we have had a small sized dairy bottling plant in Utica, OH pasteurize and bottle it for us.  This year, the Utica bottling plant is not able to perform the bottling function for us and we are relying on another grower to press, pasteurize , and bottle our cider for us.  We deliver our apples to them and they take it from there.  Perhaps the most important component in assuring high quality cider is the quality of the fruit used to make it.  We will still be in control of this very important step, and we are confident you will be pleased with the end result!