The sun came out, and we picked all day. First what I call the South China Sweet. It’s a triple-trunked seedling and a true low-acid sweet. We got five bushels. We then drove a few miles to the roadside seedling Weeks Mills Bitter, a true bittersweet that Sean Turley discovered. It did not have much fruit ,and the tree had been mangled and half torn apart by one of those unforgiving machines that they use to “trim back” the sides of the roads. Another reason to graft your favorite seedlings back at your house. The poor tree is a total mess.

We spent the afternoon up at Finley picking everything that’s ready, which is a lot. In central Maine it’s time to pick the midseason cultivars. We picked the “Old Foxwhelp.” This may be the most important apples I’ve imported from the UK and the one I’m most excited about. As many of you know, Foxwhelp was misidentified for decades as trees and scionwood of an imposter were passed around. No one could figure out why the Brits revered this ancient cultivar until it became clear that we had the wrong apple. Now the true Foxwhelp has landed on this side of the Atlantic and has begun to spread across the landscape. It’s finally here. It is correct. And, if you need scionwood, we can provide.