Mike, Grandpa's Orchard has a pretty good chart online. It relates ripening in a general way and also relative to other varieties. The specific times may vary from region to region but the relationships should be somewhat consistent.

Here is a link that might be useful: Grandpa's Orchard Ripening Chart

That's a nice pollination chart! I wish a had it before I planted 200 trees this fall. I spent allot of time trying to find information on pollination of each variety.

As far as ripening carts, many apple books (like apples for the 21 century) have verities listed in the order they ripen, not alphabetical order. Orchards in your area probably publish when there apples are available on there website.

Fruit ripening times are climate specific. For example, out here in Vista CA I am harvesting my 3rd crop of the year of Gordon and White Winter Pearmain apples. This is a bit unusual - usually only get two crops per year.

If a chart lists average ripening dates of many varieties, how is that less useful than picking out one and grading all the others in relation to that? In either case the date of ripening will fluctuate by up to 2-3 weeks, even at the same location, year to year.

Pollination charts are somewhat misleading because the further south you go the wider the spread before first and last blooming varieties. Here in the northeast there is much more overlap as apple varieties usually bloom only about a week apart from early to late blooming types. Beginners tend to worry too much about time of blooming with apples- at least those in more northern locales.

Incidentally, I've noticed that these charts rarely get all the varieties right, for some reason. I'm certain that ACN has E. plums pretty screwed up. They do have one of the most comprehensive ripening charts around as well as charts about pollination compatibility.

If I know that apple "x" ripens for picking on date "d" and that apple "y" ripens 15 days after "x" etc., then all I have to know is when "x" ripens in MY area.

I now have my whole set of picking times, more pr less. Since I have chosen to experiment with 40 cultivars it would be nice to be able to tag them with +30, -21 etc. since you can't tell by just looking.

Mike

Mike,

I've been spending a lot of time looking through listings of the USDA GRIN. There is a link on each variety's page called "observations." And on the observation page there is a data entry called Harvseason that relates the particular varieties harvest time to Golden Delicious.

I realize they don't have everything, but maybe there are enough of the varieties you are trying to be worth looking through. FYI, when searching the database I always put malus first and then the variety name since that limits your search to the apples.

Good luck.

Here is a link that might be useful: GRIN data base

Zendog, I believe that GRIN uses Delicious (the name used long ago for Red Delicious, before redder sports were selected). It probably doesn't make much difference, as Red and Golden are close in ripening time. But, I think Golden may be a couple weeks later.

Thanx guys.

Thanks for clarifying that Bob. I probably assumed the Golden part because of my deep bias against the red ones...

I agree- I've had good Goldens from the farmers market and PYO orchards (not always though), but haven't had a really good Red from either. I probably haven't had the original Delicious though. Here's an article by OrangePippin about it.