The Honeycrisp, my favorite eating apple.  I love these apples.  They are big and sweet and crisp and oh so juicy.  They have the perfect amount of “crunch”, even today, about five months after harvest.

I have only been aware of this variety for a few years, and even then I don’t recall it being initially widely available.  Until doing some research I had felt this variety might be a rediscovery of an old heirloom variety.  But no, that’s not the truth.  

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"Afternoon Snack"

The truth is that it is a cultivated variety developed at the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of Minnesota.  It was patented in 1988 and first released in 1991. One reason for its juiciness is that it has larger cells than most apples, which burst when bitten. And it stores very well if kept cool, which is likely why the one shown here was juicy and fresh tasting here in New England at the end of February, long after the growing season (the tree harvests in late September, just before Red Delicious). At minnesotaharvest.net they speak of a customer who tasted one on June 1, eight months after it had been picked, and declared it the best apple she’d ever tasted.

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Made in the USA

Interestingly, the Honeycrisp cannot be grown from seed.  That’s because it is what's called “self-sterile” which means another apple variety must be used to pollenize it. I don’t understand how this genetics works, because apparently most apple varieties can pollenize Honeycrisp, even crabapples; yet regardless, the resulting fruit is a Honeycrisp.  On the other hand, if one tries to grow a tree with the seeds of the Honeycrisp apple, the result is a hyrid of the Honeycrisp and pollenater.

The U.S. Apple Association ranks it in fifth place for America’s favorite apples.

resouces: en.m.wikipedia.org and minnesotaharvest.net