Apples
The apple buds are swelling.  We will have an incredible apple bloom
this year... and will try to get some pictures up.  A good bloom means,
if all else goes well, a large crop.

But, as they say in baseball: it's a long season.  See you the first of
September at Farmers' Markets with apples.

Bill & Maggie Hein
     Apple Varieties in the Straight River Farm Orchard

Zestar! -- August 20-25 -- a sweet-tart flavor and crisp texture that most early apples can't match.  With a
bit of brown sugar flavor -- you're going to love this apple!  A great choice for sugar-free applesauce, pies
& crisps.  Excellent dried.

Ginger Gold -- August 20-25 -- a crispy, early golden -- with a special sweet & spicy flavor that makes it
great for baking or drying, and a treat for fresh eating.

Chestnut Crab -- August 25-30 -- a large, sweet crab with great crunch & a nutty, mild flavor -- perfectly
sized for the lunch box or a quick snack.

Sweet Sixteen -- September 15. Rosy red striped skin covers a sweet, crispy apple with cherry
undertones. An all-round apple for fresh eating and cooking, we added it to the orchard by popular
demand.

Cortland --  September 15.  An old variety with a bit of tartness & very white flesh that is slow to brown.   
This is a great salad apple & also popular for sauce and baking.

SweeTango -- September 1-8.  A newer variety developed by the U of MN. It should ripen between
Zestar! and Honeycrisp -- its parent apples. The complex flavor of Zestar! combined with the crispness of
Honeycrisp should make SweeTango a popular apple.  We hope to have a small harvest in 2013.

Honeycrisp -- September 15-20.  A mid-season favorite that set a new standard for fresh eating apples.
Honeycrisp is sweet, juicy, amazingly crisp, and keeps well for weeks in the refrigerator.  Try a locally
grown Honeycrisp to discover the difference 2000 miles can make.

Honeygold -- September 20-30.  A late golden apple that is sweet, juicy & mild for fresh eating, good for
baking, and excellent dried for a healthy snack.

Haralson -- September 25--October 1.  Haralson are crisp, juicy, and tart.  This is the ultimate pie, crisp,
or sauce apple for our family & the preferred fresh eating apple for our daughter, who insists everything
else is just too sweet.  Haralson freezes & cans very well and is great fresh eating for those who like a tart
apple.

Regent -- October 1-5.  A Minnesota developed late season favorite -- sweet with just a hint of tartness
for fresh eating, baking, sauce & drying.  A firm apple that keeps well 6-8 weeks, or more, in the home
refrigerator.

Keepsake -- mid-October. Keepsake has a sweet, tropical flavor, is very firm, great for fresh eating &
cooking, and will keep, in a refrigerator, virtually all winter.
Apples by the numbers

Apple varieties vary in weight, so all weights are
approximate.

3 medium apples = 1 lb.
1 pound peeled & sliced apples = 2 3/4 cups.
1/4 peck of apples = 2.5-3 lb. medium apples.
1/2 peck of apples = 5-6 lb.
1 peck of apples = 10-12 lb.
1/2 bushel of apples = 20-24 lb.
1 bushel of apples = 40-48 lb.

1/2 peck of apples (5-6 lb.) makes 5 pints of
applesauce.
1/2 bushel of apples makes 8-10 quarts of
applesauce.
1 bushel of apples makes 15-20 quarts of
applesauce.

5-7 medium apples makes 1 9-inch pie.

1/2 peck apples yields about 8 cups jelly.
Updated May 12, 2013
Directions to and times for farmers' markets we attend can be found on these websites:

www.stpaulfarmersmarket.com
www.midtownfarmersmarket.org
www.thevillagefarmersmarket.org
http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/wellness/nutrition/farmersmarket/
www.minnesotagrown.com

If you want to buy a bushel or more of any apple variety, please send us
an email --
info@straightriverfarm.com -- or leave a phone message --
507-334-2226.
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