“Comfort me with apples, for I am sick of love.” Song of Solomon 2:5.
There is no way to summarize in words the intrinsic bliss of spending an autumn afternoon picking apples. Wandering the rows of tightly packed, gnarly trees with branches so heavy with pommes that they look like overly decorated Christmas trees, you can’t help but be present. Some orchards are quiet and serene and you can hear the snap of each apple twig as you gently roll and pull it off the branch. Some orchards sing with the laughter of children and the happy conversations of passengers as they ride on tractor pulled wagons around the farm. No matter if you find yourself picking apples alone like it is your own paradise, or have family and friends along for the hunt, the thrill of gathering this most beloved fruit holds a simple pleasure that is lost on most modern day food acquiring processes. It doesn’t hurt that New England orchards are also the apple of everyone’s eye when it comes to apple orchards and Pick Your Own perfection.
The first recording of an apple in North America was in 1623 in Massachusetts. It was a Roxbury Russet, a richly flavored apple with a citrusy flavor and a defining rough, brown skin. Prior to colonists bringing them over from Europe, the North American continent only had Crabapples. The European settlers brought apples to America as a symbol of continuity -a sentimental connection to their homelands. At this time most apples were not used for fresh eating, but for cider making -both fresh and hard. Nearly any apple high in tannins (a naturally occurring compound found in apples and other fruits that adds astringency) will work for cider. Even apples referred to as “spitters” because they were so astringent that they were spit out after one bite could be utilized for the best resulting cider.
Apple cider was more than just a seasonal beverage, it was the main drink for the colonists as it was safer to drink than water and offered nutrients and sugar to an otherwise often sparce diet. In addition to being used for cider, apples were a valuable part of the colonist diet as they could be baked, sauteed, eaten raw, dried, made in to vinegar, and used to feed livestock. Apples became such an integral part of the early American diet that anyone who had even a small garden grew their own apple trees.
Apple varieties were expanded upon and experimented with. For example, you cannot grow a Roxbury Russet from the seeds of a Roxbury Russet. The seeds do not yield true to the parent. Instead, a branch from the Roxbury Russet must be grated onto root stock from another apple tree -one usually selected for a sturdy trunk or being cold hardy. Grafting was perfected by early colonists and the quality of apples available began to expand throughout New England. This means that when you bite into any variety of apple, you are essentially biting into a direct descendant of the original tree that the variety was started on.
There was one person, whoever, that believed grafting an apple tree was unethical and cruel to the tree. He was a Massachusetts born, literate (rare for the time), rugged, social anomaly known for being a naturalist, passivist, Native American supporting, anti-materialist, herbalist, whose spiritual beliefs were based in nature. His name was John Chapman, or as American lore has deemed him, Johnny Appleseed.
Referred to as America’s First Great Walker and a pioneer nurseryman, Chapman traveled from the East Coast to the Midwest carrying apple seeds that he collected from places like the back of Ale Houses where the pulp from cider pressing was discarded. He would sift through the pulp, take and cure the seeds, and then choose about three acres of land before accelerating natural selection by planting the seeds in neat rows and fostering orchard growth for forthcoming settlers.
Chapman also acquired land of his own and sold and gave away thousands of seedlings to pioneers traveling West. It is impossible to know how many orchards or trees he planted in his fifty years of propagating and establishing apple orchards. One thing that is known by his refusal to graft apple trees and only use seeds is that these orchards were planted, not to feed people with fresh fruit, rather to make apple cider to sustain people through harsh Midwest winters. When Chapman passed away in 1845 he owned 1,200 acres of planted land and had established countless orchards that were sold off to and now inhabited by pioneers.
During the 1800’s America began to ship apples to England and the West Indies. They were packed in barrels and transported in rough seas so only the sturdiest and longest lasting varieties (like Roxbury Russets) were used. Apples were shipped mainly from Portland and Boston and soon apples were a notable part of the American trade. As a result America began to expand their little private orchards and the first large scale orchards were opened.
Apple cider remained the king of beverage and hearth until the mid-1800’s when German immigrants brought a new drink with them -one that proved just as popular and quickly displaced cider as the preferred average beverage: Beer. Cider also fell out of favor under the new temperance movement. The Temperance movement gained momentum and alcohol consumption went from a normalized, daily practice and safer alternative to water to a stigmatized, socially unacceptable practice. Early American apple orchards were forced to destroy and burn cider-specific trees and focus entirely on apple production for fresh eating or processing as food.
With the downfall of cider, the apple industry had to remake itself. In 1904 the World’s Fair in St. Louis provided that opportunity. Professor J.T. Stinson, a 20th century fruit specialist, gave an address to the crowd at the fair. Stinson lectured on the health benefits of apples and during this presentation he coined the phrase, “An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away.” This single phrase took hold and sparked a nationwide interest in eating fresh apples for the health benefits. The most popular varieties at the time of the fresh apple movement were Northern Spy, Rhode Island Greening, and Baldwin -all New England varieties.
American continued to grow and enjoy a wide variety of apples until 1933 when a harsh winter killed over a million Baldwin trees. Orchardists and pomologists began to look for a variety that was cold hardy to avoid this agricultural tragedy again. The Mcintosh was discovered and valued for its cold resistance and high yield production. Soon, many other heirloom varieties were lost for more generic, hardy counterparts. In the mid 1830’s there were around 17,000 varieties of apples in North America. Today there are only about 2,500 varieties and only 100 are grown commercially in the United States. It is likely that only five or six kinds can be found at the local supermarket.
Apple orchards continued to find new ways to thrive in an increasingly modern world. In 1970’s there was a lifestyle movement where people wanted to eat food that was local, fresh, and ethically grown. With a return to respecting nature and connecting with food and food sources responsibly and sustainably, a new way of farming was born: Pick Your Own. Orchards such as Jaswell’s Farm in Rhode Island began to offer their goods directly to the consumer -often including things like hayrides, baked pies, and fresh apple cider. Soon apple orchards became not only a place to purchase food, but a place to be a part of the farm and harvest experience.
Today New Englanders are still enjoying the best of what orchards have to offer. Though less than 2% of our nations fresh apples come from New England, it is a well known fact that New England apple orchards set the standard for Pick-Your-Own. New England is also the heart of preservation, education, and propagation for heirloom varieties of apple. If you are looking for the perfect autumn afternoon adventure that will likely result in wandering the rows of fruit-laden trees, a bit of taste testing between varieties, and perhaps even some baked goods cooling on your windowsill, then here is a list of ten of the best ranked apple orchards in New England. Don’t miss the chance between now and the first hard frost to participate in this pastime that is as American as apple pie.
Alyson’s Orchard, New Hampshire
Red Apple Farm, Massachusetts
Lyman Orchards, Connecticut
Shelburn Orchards, Vermont
Applecrest Farm Orchards, New Hampshire
Champlain Orchards, Vermont
Scott Farm, Vermont
Super Chilly Farm, Maine
Sauchuk’s Farm, Massachusetts
Rocky Brook Orchard, Rhode Island