Are Old English Apple Varieties on the way out ??

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From a home backyard perspective, growing traditional old English varieties is on the up and up. Especially those wanting to do home grafting and setting up private orchards.

New Community orchards are on the up and up, despite vandalization and subsequent neglect.

Restoring old neglected traditional commerical/village orchards is on the up and up, due to conservation, wild life habitats and habitat diversity. They are grown at about 150 trees per hectare.

Traditional orchards in the UK accounted for 24,600 hectares in 2006 and 16,992 hectares in 2011

Golden Delicious Effects on UK Apple Industry

Then came 1973 and Britain’s entry into the Common Market. Suddenly French apples began appearing in the shops. Because GD and to lesser degree the Granny Smith (originated in Australia in 1868) was released by the French on the UK public, approx 10 days earlier than Cox Orange Pippin became available, and due to the publicity. It decimated the UK’s apple industry, 60% of all UK’s apple orchards were grubbed up, often with EU grants that forbade replanting within 15 years. Kent, the Garden of England, lost 85% of its apple orchards. Hereford fared even worse, losing 90%.

Ironically, the Golden Delicious is an American apple, that came via Algeria to France. I remember buying these apples as they were boosted by a massive “le crunch” advertising campaign, they were cheap and all totally identical. No mention of flavor, as they did not have any. They were totally bland.

The fight back started in 1989 with the establishment of the Bramley Campaign. A year later the trade association English Apples and Pears was founded, and this then became British Apples and Pears.

However New commerical orchards (mono culture) are a different matter, and they only have a lifespan of around 20 years, and are grown, dependant on system being used at 2100 trees per hectare up to over 22000 trees per hectare.

Commerical orchards in the UK accounted for 15,000 hectares in 2002 then down to 14,500 hectares in 2012. Cider apple production accounted for 6,700 hectares in 2002 and 7,200 in 2012.

The 2 most grown culinary apples are Braeburn, Gala (and clones), with a downturn for Bramley cookers of 2,600 hectares in 2002 then down to 1,760 hectares in 2012. Other increases since 2009 is Jazz and Cameo. Strangley Kanzi has seen a reduction of 32%

Traditional varieties have seen a reduction by Discovery 11%, Worcester Pearmain 13%, Cox 6%, Egremont Russet 23%, Jonagold 10%

Since 2021, British apple growers faced 30% increases in costs of production and received just 8% increase in returns from supermarkets.

So the amount of varieties being offered at supermarkets is generally down, to only a few. It has been noticeable that the amount of UK grown apples is approx constant, but imports have changed from EU counties to South Africa and Chile.

But the amount of old UK varieites now being grown by home orchardists is increasing exponentially.

https://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/file/5579609236045824