English Apples - Bramley

The most popular cooking apple since it overtook Wellington (Dumelow's Seedling) a couple of generations ago. Large fruit, good flavour; stores all winter (can last until May someyears); OK as dessert apple in a sunny year after a couple of months' storage. Moderately susceptible to scab. Triploid: sets a better crop if other apples are nearby to pollinate it. Pick mid to late October. Blossom gets frosted in some years. Partial tip bearer. One of the higher Vitamin C apples.

Note that if you buy an apple tree which needs a pollinator, Bramley won't do the job very well.

Graham Deacon adds: Bramley Clone 20 is a shorter, jointed version with more compact growth of around 20%.

ND adds - there is also Crimson Bramley - a crimson sport. However, ordinary Bramley can be highly coloured after storage in a sunny year. The flavour, keeping qualities and vitamin C content are the same. Note that vitamin C is only present in uncooked apples, in spite of what the books say. I've measured it.

Pictures (click on small images for detail):

Blossom

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Fruit

compiled by Nigel Deacon / Diversity website

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