Grimes Golden apple
Malus domestica
Great historical interest as the probable parent of Golden Delicious, with similar sweet flavour and good keeping qualities, and widely planted during early 20th century.
Grimes Golden is a 19th century apple from the USA. You may not have heard of it, but if it looks familiar it is not surprising - this is almost certainly the parent of Golden Delicious, and therefore a distant ancestor of a great number of the apple varieties on this website.
One of our listed suppliers, Stephen Cummins of Cummins Nursery recalls his Great Grandfather planted 20 acres of this variety at the start of the 20th century - a good illustration of how important this variety was commercially at that time. However, by the 1930s its success had waned, as growers turned to its offspring Golden Delicious instead. (We would be interested to know from anyone why Grimes Golden was replaced by Golden Delicious).
The main characteristics of Grimes Golden, which are also found in Golden Delicious are the clean dry finish, very slight russeting tendency, somewhat prominent lenticels (the attractive speckles on the skin) and the slightly tall shape with a hint of ribs. The long stalk, which often remains attached to the fruit after picking, is generally a reliable indicator of Golden Delicious / Grimes Golden heritage in all its offspring. Even Rubinette, that most Cox-like of Golden Delicious crosses, has the familiar long stalk.
All in all it is quite difficult to tell Grimes Golden and Golden Delicious apart from a simple visual inspection. However, when it comes to flavour, there is a noticeable difference. As might be expected Grimes Golden is crisp and sweet - however, the sweetness is richer than in Golden Delicious, and most tasters agree that Grimes Golden has the superior flavour. There's a hint of rich spiciness in Grimes Golden which is completely absent in Golden Delicious and indeed all its descendants ... with the possible exception of Rubinette.
Summary
- Parentage: Unknown
- Origin: West Virginia, United States
- Introduced: 1830s
- Orange Pippin Cultivar ID: 119100
- We are grateful to Brogdale Farm - home of the UK National Fruit Collection - for providing samples of this variety.
Identification
- Bultitude apple group: 5. Yellow, smooth, sweet or acidic
Growing
- Vigour: Average growth
Mature tree heights for this variety (approximate)
| Rootstock | Soil quality | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poor | Below average | Average | Above average | Very good | |
| P22 | 2.1 ft 0.6 m |
2.6 ft 0.8 m |
3.2 ft 1.0 m |
3.7 ft 1.1 m |
4.2 ft 1.3 m |
| M27 | 2.8 ft 0.9 m |
3.5 ft 1.1 m |
4.2 ft 1.3 m |
4.9 ft 1.5 m |
5.6 ft 1.7 m |
| M9 | 4.2 ft 1.3 m |
5.3 ft 1.6 m |
6.3 ft 1.9 m |
7.4 ft 2.3 m |
8.4 ft 2.6 m |
| Bud.9 | 4.2 ft 1.3 m |
5.3 ft 1.6 m |
6.3 ft 1.9 m |
7.4 ft 2.3 m |
8.4 ft 2.6 m |
| Geneva 16 | 4.2 ft 1.3 m |
5.3 ft 1.6 m |
6.3 ft 1.9 m |
7.4 ft 2.3 m |
8.4 ft 2.6 m |
| Geneva 11 | 4.9 ft 1.5 m |
6.1 ft 1.9 m |
7.4 ft 2.3 m |
8.6 ft 2.6 m |
9.8 ft 3.0 m |
| M26 | 5.6 ft 1.7 m |
7.0 ft 2.1 m |
8.4 ft 2.6 m |
9.8 ft 3.0 m |
11.2 ft 3.4 m |
| Geneva 30 | 5.6 ft 1.7 m |
7.0 ft 2.1 m |
8.4 ft 2.6 m |
9.8 ft 3.0 m |
11.2 ft 3.4 m |
| MM102 | 5.6 ft 1.7 m |
7.0 ft 2.1 m |
8.4 ft 2.6 m |
9.8 ft 3.0 m |
11.2 ft 3.4 m |
| M7 | 6.3 ft 1.9 m |
7.9 ft 2.4 m |
9.5 ft 2.9 m |
11.0 ft 3.4 m |
12.6 ft 3.9 m |
| M116 | 6.3 ft 1.9 m |
7.9 ft 2.4 m |
9.5 ft 2.9 m |
11.0 ft 3.4 m |
12.6 ft 3.9 m |
| MM106 | 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 |
| MM111 | 8.4 ft 2.6 m |
10.5 ft 3.2 m |
12.6 ft 3.9 m |
14.7 ft 4.5 m |
16.8 ft 5.2 m |
| Bud.118 | 9.8 ft 3.0 m |
12.3 ft 3.8 m |
14.7 ft 4.5 m |
17.2 ft 5.3 m |
19.6 ft 6.0 m |
| M25 | 11.2 ft 3.4 m |
14.0 ft 4.3 m |
16.8 ft 5.2 m |
19.6 ft 6.0 m |
22.4 ft 6.9 m |
