I also seem to have to hold them on the tree to the bitter end to get the fruit to fully flavor up. When the trees first started baring this wasn't the case. This may be the reason you are having the problems- you are keeping the fruit on the tree well after seeds have reached maturity. For me the majority of the fruit develops rot before the fruit is actually worth eating but these are the typical round circles of rot that starts on the exterior. Until this season I assumed the issue was early springs and very warm weather when they ripened but this year should have been perfect. The fruit was huge and beautiful but bland. By the time it flavored up, 80% of the fruit had huge rot spots or had already dropped off the tree. I have only one site where this apple is actually worth growing, it seems, but I will keep working on it. Next year I won't thin until shortly before they start to ripen. I don't want to have to do all the requisite calcium sprays is the thing. Not that big of a fan.

Thank you Scott. I copied your list for future reference after reading it. Your studious and passionate observations are useful and interesting as always. I think it should be mentioned to others, tempted to use this as a guideline, that it takes at least ten years of cropping to really get a handle on the quality of any given variety- it is amazing how much variation there is year to year. And that variation gives you a clue about how much any given variety can vary region to region. Also a tree has to be in full production to accurately asses the fruit. A couple of fruit with lots of leaves may not be a realistic representation. There is also the obvious fact that taste evaluations are extremely subjective Please don't take these comments as a criticism of your evaluations, which I value highly. I only offer them to suggest to others to choose varieties to grow based on a wide range of information. The best information may be available by sampling a wide range of apples at a nearby farmers market to find apples that are bound to be relatively easy to grow. In my experience unusual apples often turn out to be unusual because they do not crop reliably or are otherwise unproductive or difficult to grow. For a beginner I think it's best to start with reliable varieties and then literally branch out. I have found Kidd's to be pretty easy to grow also, although it tends to be biennial for me. This may be due to tardy thinning, however. For me, in southeastern NY, most of the Russets seem very prone to bug and wasp damage with Roxbury being an exception. Roxbury is also extremely and reliably annually productive. Another exception is Ashmeads Kernel (alhtough not so productive but a best of best apple). Neither of these is fully russeted, however. I'd like to get some Pomme Gris wood from you. Have to see if it isn't easier for me than the likes of Golden Russet and Hudson's Golden Gem- two wonderful but difficult to grow apples for me. By the time they are ripe they tend to be either full of bird and wasp holes or bug bumps and dimples. After all the late frost, squirrel, bird and wasp problems I only have Goldrush, Jonathon, and Roxbury in storage this year. Worst season in memory and good riddance to it!

Mulberryknob, here's another report of Stony Pit you may find interesting. The other poster got his tree from Starks as well. But, before giving up on the tree, I'd want to make sure it wasn't something else causing the problem. Maybe bag half a dozen pears (zip locks with the corners cut off) when they are still tiny, after making sure they don't have any small bite marks. That should at least keep most bugs and fungus off it. Thanks Harvestman- with larger crops, I'll make sure to let most hang longer. As it was, the 20th Century were at least equal in flavor (and much larger than) to the PYO Shinshiki & Houshui we picked a few weeks later and the Korean Giant was clearly better. Both are in warm spots in the yard, with nearby stones which reflect some light and heat. Maybe I should look into finding white mulch. But, given how many trees I have, I don't think anything can compete with freely delivered wood chips.

Morning all! Fran, I put in a bit more postage than what it was for me to mail my package to you. I don't think that I'll get back what I sent because we have a lot of veggie growers here, BUT if by chanace you dont have enough postage I'd be happy to send more if you need it to get my package back to me. I'm so glad that I bought the veggie seeds, I could almost hear how excited people were when I offered them up for grabs! Thank you to anyone who sent flowers in for me, I assure you that every single seed will find a good home. Lisa