Apple: Cultivars

There are over 6000 regionally important cultivars and races of apple across the world. Among the world apple cultivars Fuji (Ralls Janet x Delicious) of Japan is at number one contributing 14.1 million tones to total production. Red Delicious (Chance seedling) of USA, Golden delicious (Chance

Fuji (Source-indiamart)

seedling) of USA and Gala (Kidd’s Orange X Golden Delicious) have got 2^nd, 3rd and 4^th position with 9.3, 8.8 and 3.8 million tones production, respectively. In India Delicious group of apple cultivars contributing about 60 to 70% to total apple production but these varieties are self-unfruitful and need pollinizers.

Ambri (Source-J&K Horticulture)

The Red Delicious, Maharaji, Golden Delicious and Ambri cultivars are being mainly cultivated in J & K. The Delicious apples were introduced at Shimla in 1925 from USA while Fuji and Gala were introduced during 1995 in the country. The following are the suitable cultivars of apple:

Early season: Irish Peach, Benoni, Starkrimson, Tydeman’s Early, Michael Molies, Delicious, Schlomit, Early Shanburry, Fenny Benoni, Chaubattia Princess, Sun Set and Staymard.

Mid-season: American Mother, Razakwar, Jonathan, Cox’s Orange, Pippin, Red Gold, Queen’s Apple, Rome Beauty, Scarlet Siberian, Starking Delicious, Red Chief, Oregon Spor, Red Spur, McIntosh, Cortland, Rich-a-Red, Wine Sap, Firdous, Shireen and Ben Davis.

Late Season: King Pippin, American Apirouge, Kerry Pippin, Sunhari, Chamure, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Ambri Baldwin, Lal Ambri, Yellow Newton, Winter Banana, Granny Smith, Rymer and Buckingham.

(Source-YSPUH&F)

Low chilling cultivars: These cultivars need less than 800 hours of winter chilling at less than 7⁰C temperature due to which they can be cultivated at locations experiencing mild winter. Tropical Beauty, Parlin’s Beauty, Tamar, Vered, Naomi, Maayan, Michal, Anna and Shlomit are the main low chilling cultivars.

Pollinizers: The pollinizer is a cultivar which produces viable pollen compatible with other cultivars whereas pollinator is an agent carrying pollen from one flower to another such as bees and insect in apple. The compatible pollination is essential for fruit setting in apple but most of the apple cultivars are self-incompatible due to which they need compatible poliinizers. The cultivars used as pollinizers should be compatible with others, producing huge pollens, flowering longer duration, synchronizing flowering with main cultivars and regular in bearing behavior. Depending upon occurrence of weather in the area 11 to 33 per cent pollinizers are planted in the apple orchard. Usually every third tree in every third row should be a pollinizer for enough pollination. The 8 bee hive are recommended for high density orchards and orchards having less than 15% pollonizer plants whereas 2-3 hives are sufficient for

Red Delicious (Source-YSPUH&F)

orchards more than 30% pollonizers. The Tydeman’s Early Worcester, Summer Queen as well as Early Shanburry are early bloomer and good pollinizer for early cultivars likewise Spartan, Red Gold, Lord Lambourne, Ginger Gold, Winter Banana, Gala, Cox Orange and McIntosh are good for mid season cultivars while Golden Delicious, Sunhari, More Spur Gold, Golden Spur, Granny Smith, Golden Hornet and Commercial are suitable pollinizer for late cultivars.

Spur cultivars: Red Chief, Starkrimson, Well Spur, Silver Spur, Bright N Early, Golden Spur,

Silver Spur (Source-ICAR)

Starspur Golden, Red Spur, Ruby Red, Hardi Spur, Ultra Red, Supreme, Atwood and Wellspur. The Summer Queen, Manchurian, Red Flesh, Snow Drift and Golden Hornet are the good pollinizers for spur cultivars.

Red Chief (Source-ICAR)

Crab apple: The crab apples bear flower both on the spur as well as on one-year-old shoots. The spurs bloom first followed by shoots that gives longer duration of flowerings. In addition, crab apples are regular in flowering with high bloom index. Manchurian crab, Japanese crab, Red Flesh, Snow Drift and Golden Hornet are the promising crabs apples.

Coloured strains: Top Red, Hi Red, Vance Delicious and Hardeman.

Scab resistant cultivars: Priscilla, Sir Prize, Macfree, Freedom, Coop-12, Coop-13, Firdous and Shireen.

Processing cultivars: Delicious groups, Granny Smith, Liberty, Rome Beauty, York Imperial, Stayman, Winesap, Northern Spy, Prima, Sir Prize, Freedom, Red Free, Summer Red, McIntosh, Maharaji and Prima.

Maharaji (Source-J&K Horticulture)

Northen Spy Cultivar: The cultivar is developed in East Bloomfield New York in around 1800. The cultivar is not very attractive in appearance but very rich in vitamin C . It is used as desserts and processed into juice and cider. Malling-Merton series of rootstocks have been developed by crossing Malling series rootstocks with Northen Spy.