Ashmead's Kernel Apple tree

Owner's comments

This is one of my favorite apple varieties. It is precocious and has been heavy-bearing here, and when thinned it can produce a few large apples among the many small to medium ones. The apples are tart with a little sweetness, juicy and have a slightly grainy texture that I enjoy. This is one of four trees planted close together in a square pattern, with about two feet between each tree. Each tree gets a quarter-circle of space to grow and is kept small so that I can have many varieties in a small area. I am experimenting with apple varieties that are not known to grow good fruit in Southern California, which are almost all apple varieties. I remove trees that grow bad fruit. Ones that grow good fruit but are not my favorites are likely to end up in the edges of my yard, while my favorites (like Ashmead's Kernel) get a little more room in the center. 2014: It looks like I didn't thin the tree enough, so I have a crop of small apples this year.