Rhode Island Greening apple

Rhode Island Greening apple identification images

All images copyright Orange Pippin unless otherwise stated.

USDA identification images for Rhode Island Greening

The identification paintings in the USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection span the years 1886 to 1942.

Citation: U.S. Department of Agriculture Pomological Watercolor Collection. Rare and Special Collections, National Agricultural Library, Beltsville, MD 20705.

Visitor reviews

• 06 Sep 2023  Alan Choiniere

  Every plant app. Says that my tree is a RI Greening Appletree, but the apples are ripe in July.
• 04 Jan 2023  Jennifer Stadler

  I fell in love with this variety of apple on our honeymoon in Door County Wisconsin in November of 1971. It cooks perfectly, if lovely to eat fresh, and the flavor is all the things you want from an apple. Sweet, tart, smooth with an excellent texture. My only complaint about this apple is that if you can't get to an orchard they are nearly impossible to find.
• 31 Oct 2016  Mike BettsMICHIGAN/KENT, United States

  I have an R.I. Greening in my orchard. 2016 was the first year for it to bear (one single apple). I protected it as if it were a gold nugget. A very beautiful apple indeed. Bright green ground. A nice reddish blush on the sunny side. I cut into that one apple about five days after harvest. It had a very pleasing tartness. Not one that would knock you off your seat. A slight citrus hint. I am really glad I planted this tree. I make a lot of baked apple deserts and am really excited to add this variety to my ingredient list.
• 09 Sep 2013  David PeragalloNEW HAMPSHIRE, United States

  Complex and nuanced flavor. We inherited a tree from some unknown fore bearer, thinking it was a crabapple. Once pruned it began to yield these large, pleasant apples that are so versatile, if not the most beautiful.
• 29 Oct 2012  Mary Esther PutnamUT, United States

  We live in a small mountain community in Southern Utah. We had our apple trees trimmed last winter and the one tree which never produces many apples is loaded this year! They are tart, but withstood the 1st and 2nd freezes. Sooo, I decided to pick them and do research. They look like, taste like and cook like the description of Rhode Island greenings. I love the taste and the applesauce is wonderful. The tree is on property that has been in our family for 150 years, ancestors who came from the north eastern US. I wish I knew the history of our tree.!!!
• 28 Dec 2010  Sally Smoot34, United States

  For a RI greening to be eaten raw you have to sprinkle it with salt, that will make it taste sweet. Trust me, I grew up eating and cooking with greenings. My mother, grandmother, and aunts prided themselves on making superb apple pies and they all swore by greenings as being the best, and necessary for a pie you could be proud of. You do need to add a lot of sugar for the pie to not taste too tart. In RI, in the 60's and 70's, you could find them everywhere but not anymore. I don't know why they fell out of favor, I miss them and have never found a good substitute.
• 11 Feb 2010  JimIL, United States

  Often large and firm fleshed. Not as juicy as some varieties, but keeps its shape well when cooked, and esteemed as a cooking apple. The old, untended tree we inherited from Great Grandpa often developed surface like honeydew. The Rhode Island Greenings grown by a friend show none of this.
• 20 Oct 2008  AdamARLINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS, United States

  These may be favored for pies but they are also pleasant, if not remarkable, eating as well. Generally more tart than otherwise but mild, with hints of cider, grapes, and lemonade. I can't say exactly how long mine had been off the tree--at least a week--but it was still firm, if tender, and refreshing to eat.

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Where to buy trees

The following tree nurseries offer Rhode Island Greening apple trees for sale:

• Orange Pippin Fruit Trees (USA) United States
  Rhode Island Greening apple trees
• Cummins Nursery
  United States  More >>

Where to buy fresh fruit

The following orchards grow Rhode Island Greening:

United States

• California

  • The Apple Farm -- Bates & Schmitt, Philo

• Connecticut

  • Palazzi Orchard, East Killingly
  • Seek No Further Orchard, Hebron

• Iowa

  • Wilson's Orchard, Iowa City

• Maine

  • Sweetser's Apple Barrel and Orchards, Cumberland Center
  • Tiny Orchards, Saco

• Massachusetts

  • Autumn Hill Orchards, Groton
  • Old Frog Pond Farm, Harvard
  • Red Apple Farm, Phillipston

• Michigan

  • Alber's Orchard & Cider Mill, Manchester
  • Tompkins' Orchard and Country Store, Vassar

• New Hampshire

  • Alyson's Apple Orchard, Walpole
  • Applecrest Farm Orchards, Hampton Falls
  • Gould Hill Farm, Contoocook

• New Jersey

  • Pochuck Valley Farms Market and deli, Glenwood

• New York

  • Borden's Orchard, Schaghticoke
  • Miller's Apples, Dunkirk
  • Ontario Orchards Farm, Market & Cider Mill, Sterling
  • Soons Orchards Inc., New Hampton

• Pennsylvania

  • Holy Root Farm, New Tripoli

• Washington

  • Piper's Orchard, Seattle

Canada

• British Columbia

  • Salt Spring Apple Company, Salt Spring Island

References

• Cedar-Apple Rust  
  Author: Stephen Vann, University of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture (FSA7538)
  Rated as susceptible - control usually needed where CAR is prevalent.
• Apples for the 21st Century
  Author: Manhart