New apple varieties, such as Honeycrisp, continue to appear in orchards around the country. But some varieties, such as Ben Davis, one of the parents of the Cortland apple, have fallen by the wayside over the centuries.
According to Larry Wood, a writer specializing in the history of the Ozarks, the Ben Davis apple was the top-selling apple in Missouri in the late 1800s. It was a good, reliable producer, a good keeper, and the climate in Missouri suited its need for a longer season to develop its beautiful red color. It also transported easily, making it a profitable crop.
In a blog post written by Wood, “Ben Davis Apples,” he quotes a column from a Jefferson City newspaper written in the 1920s regarding the demise of the Ben Davis: “A Ben Davis apple orchard with the big red apples backed by the green leaves of the trees is a pastoral picture ever to be remembered. To the uninitiated, it creates a desire to eat, a most unfortunate urge because Ben Davis apples, for eating purposes, don’t live up to their beauty.”
As shipping methods improved, it began losing market share to the tastier Winesap and Red Delicious varieties, and it has all but disappeared from today’s orchards. But it continues to paint a “pastoral picture” with its deep red and green stripes that grace every Cortland apple in our orchards.
www.carlsonorchards.com
Pick-your-own Ginger Gold and Honeycrisp apples; McIntosh and Gala may be ready to pick by the weekend, check Facebook; cut-your-own sunflowers and zinnias. Available in the store are peaches and nectarines; Ginger Gold, Gravenstein, and Honeycrisp apples; cut flowers; and locally grown corn and other vegetables.
Store is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily; pick-your-own is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
www.doeorchards.com
Pick-your-own freestone yellow peaches and Honeycrisp, Gravenstein, Gala, and Ginger Gold apples. There are some ripe apples on some of the other early variety trees, such as McIntosh, and customers are welcome to try picking them. The ripe ones will come off the tree easily. Peaches in quarts and half-bushel boxes, as well as B-grade peaches for cooking or canning, and Honeycrisp, Gravenstein, Gala, and Ginger Gold apples are available on the stand.
Stand and pick-your-own hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
www.goodspiritsfarm.com
At the self-service farmstand this week: Organically grown raspberries, peaches, field tomatoes (heirloom varieties), cucumbers, zucchini, pattypan squash, kale, collards, New Zealand spinach, butternut squash, and fresh herbs, including basil. Also available at the stand are the farm’s own honey, berry jams (including raspberry, peach, strawberry-peach, blueberry, and blackberry), flower bouquets, herbal teas, lavender hand cream, lip balm, and chicken and duck eggs from Harvard’s Goose and Hen farm.
Stand is open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
www.oldfrogpondfarm.com
Pick-your-own raspberries opens Sept. 8, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m for the outdoor sculpture opening reception, then Wednesdays through Sundays 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. At the self-service farmstand on the porch: certified organic fruit and vegetables, including Honeycrisp apples, Asian pears, fingerling potatoes, tomatoes, garlic, their own herbal teas, and calendula oil.
Stand is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
www.westwardorchards.com
Pick-your-own apples will begin Sept. 7, with McIntosh and Cortland as the recommended trees to pick from. Available in the store: Westward’s McIntosh, Cortland, Honeycrisp, Gala, and Ginger Gold apples, Red Bartlett pears, yellow and white peaches, nectarines, mixed plums, watermelons, honeydews, cantaloupes; regular, heirloom, and cherry tomatoes; lettuce, cucumbers, corn, kale, broccoli, carrots, eggplant, summer squash, zucchini, peppers, beets, collard greens, cabbage, leeks, potatoes, shallots, and mixed herbs.
Store is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; pick-your-own is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
—Compiled by Joan Eliyesil