2001; An Apple Odyssey

Is that the wicked magician out of Aladdin? Or is it just the voice of Fashion in Tasmania?

Probably the latter, I reckon, but the face of the Tassie apple has certainly changed. Say hi to Mr Tideman!

Way back in the 1960s and 70s, when orchards were all around places like Eugenana (say it "You-jen-arna")and Spreyton (say it "Spray-tonn") the apples Tasmanians saw mostly were red eating Jonathans, darker red Red Delicious, yellow coloured Golden Delicious, little red Lady in the Snow, green Granny Smiths and a few darker green Sturmers. A few lucky people had Gravensteins (a streaky apple that was crsip and sweet) or else the little sweet Coxes Oranges growing in their gardens, but you didn't often see those for sale. Both the little Cox and the Grav are much better eaten straight from the tree.

So, what about these Swinging 60 apples now? Are they still Top of the Apple Pops? I went to the fruit and vegie shop the other day to check it out. What I found there was the Tideman, a fat red apple that never quite tastes ripe, the dark red pear-shaped Fuji, which was developed for the Japanese market, the nice little crisp Crofton and bags of fat green Grannies.

No, no! We don't have alien grandmothers here. I meant Granny Smith apples.

Later in the season the Golden and Red Delicious will appear along with Pink Ladies and Royal Gala. Jonathans are still available, but seem less popular than they were. Their place in the sun seems to have been taken by the hybrid Jonagold, which is bigger than a Jonathan and redder than a Golden Delicious but tastes a bit like both.

Some of these varieties are featured on this beaut apple industry page http://www.sydneymarkets.com.au/fandv/ap... . It's an Australian page rather than a Tasmanian one, so some kinds are missing and others take their places. For a top Tassie site, try this one. http://www.tasfresh.com.au/ The colours are so bright you'll want to eat the apples.

So there's the 2001 Apple Odyssey. It isn't over yet, because that Tasfresh site lists apples I haven't tasted yet. Meanwhile, I'll show you what we have in our own little orchard. That small tree with the branches that sweep the ground is a Coxes Orange. Ssh! Don't tell anyone or we'll have applenappers in!

The bigger tree is a Golden Delicious. We'll stew those later and use them all through the winter. Finally, to the left, that one is a Sturmer. We cook it mostly, but when they're very, very ripe I eat them sometimes.

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