Greensleeves apple
Malus domestica
A good garden apple, with a pleasant but unexceptional flavour.
This apple can be picked in mid-September but will happily stay on the tree into October so you can eat it fresh from the tree for at least a month. This, along with its good cropping, make it a really excellent variety to grow in the garden.
In theory Greensleeves marries the sweet flavour of its Golden Delicious parent balanced by the acidity of its other parent, James Grieve. It can be hard and sharp early in the season but mellows later, but it never quite achieves what the parentage suggests it should.
As the photo shows, Greensleeves is actually a lovely golden yellow colour if you leave it on the tree into October.
Summary
- Parentage: Golden Delicious and James Grieve
- Origin: Kent, England, United Kingdom
- Introduced: 1966
- Orange Pippin Cultivar ID: 102600
- Some historical details taken with kind permission from 'The New Book of Apples' by Joan Morgan and Alison Richards , illustrated by Elisabeth Dowle, published by Ebury Press, 2002.
Identification
- Bultitude apple group: 5. Yellow, smooth, sweet or acidic
Using
- Good for eating fresh
- Good for juice
- Flavour quality: Average
- Flavour style: Sweet/Sharp
- Ripening period: Mid season
- Use / keeping: 1 week
Growing
- Cropping: Heavy
- Flowering group: 3
- Fertility: Partially self-fertile
- Good pollinator
- Vigour: Weak growing
- Gardening skill: Easy
- Fruit bearing: Spur-bearer
- Attractive blossom
- Attractive fruit
- General disease resistance: Good
Climate
- Suitable for temperate climates
- Suitable for N. England?: Yes
Other qualities
- RHS Award of Garden Merit 1993
Mature tree heights for this variety (approximate)
| Rootstock | Soil quality | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poor | Below average | Average | Above average | Very good | |
| P22 | 1.5 ft 0.5 m |
1.9 ft 0.6 m |
2.3 ft 0.7 m |
2.6 ft 0.8 m |
3.0 ft 0.9 m |
| M27 | 2.0 ft 0.6 m |
2.5 ft 0.8 m |
3.0 ft 0.9 m |
3.5 ft 1.1 m |
4.0 ft 1.2 m |
| M9 | 3.0 ft 0.9 m |
3.8 ft 1.2 m |
4.5 ft 1.4 m |
5.3 ft 1.6 m |
6.0 ft 1.8 m |
| Bud.9 | 3.0 ft 0.9 m |
3.8 ft 1.2 m |
4.5 ft 1.4 m |
5.3 ft 1.6 m |
6.0 ft 1.8 m |
| Geneva 16 | 3.0 ft 0.9 m |
3.8 ft 1.2 m |
4.5 ft 1.4 m |
5.3 ft 1.6 m |
6.0 ft 1.8 m |
| Geneva 11 | 3.5 ft 1.1 m |
4.4 ft 1.3 m |
5.3 ft 1.6 m |
6.1 ft 1.9 m |
7.0 ft 2.1 m |
| M26 | 4.0 ft 1.2 m |
5.0 ft 1.5 m |
6.0 ft 1.8 m |
7.0 ft 2.1 m |
8.0 ft 2.5 m |
| Geneva 30 | 4.0 ft 1.2 m |
5.0 ft 1.5 m |
6.0 ft 1.8 m |
7.0 ft 2.1 m |
8.0 ft 2.5 m |
| MM102 | 4.0 ft 1.2 m |
5.0 ft 1.5 m |
6.0 ft 1.8 m |
7.0 ft 2.1 m |
8.0 ft 2.5 m |
| M7 | 4.5 ft 1.4 m |
5.6 ft 1.7 m |
6.8 ft 2.1 m |
7.9 ft 2.4 m |
9.0 ft 2.8 m |
| M116 | 4.5 ft 1.4 m |
5.6 ft 1.7 m |
6.8 ft 2.1 m |
7.9 ft 2.4 m |
9.0 ft 2.8 m |
| MM106 | 5.0 ft 1.5 m |
6.3 ft 1.9 m |
7.5 ft 2.3 m |
8.8 ft 2.7 m |
10.0 ft 3.1 m |
| MM111 | 6.0 ft 1.8 m |
7.5 ft 2.3 m |
9.0 ft 2.8 m |
10.5 ft 3.2 m |
12.0 ft 3.7 m |
| Bud.118 | 7.0 ft 2.1 m |
8.8 ft 2.7 m |
10.5 ft 3.2 m |
12.3 ft 3.8 m |
14.0 ft 4.3 m |
| M25 | 8.0 ft 2.5 m |
10.0 ft 3.1 m |
12.0 ft 3.7 m |
14.0 ft 4.3 m |
16.0 ft 4.9 m |
Relationships to other varieties
Offspring of this variety:
Parents and other ancestors of this variety:
- Golden Delicious (parent)
- James Grieve (parent)
