Cortland

(Ben Davis x McIntosh) NY Stn, 1915.

Although never as important as McIntosh, Cortland remains very popular throughout northern New England even in this era of many new introductions.  Medium-large slightly ribbed dull red fruit with a purple blush. Excellent eating and cooking. Slow-oxidizing white flesh is very good in salads; fine-grained, crisp, tender, juicy. Produces a surprisingly delightful cider, fresh or fermented, in a mix or even on its own.  Vigorous tall upright spreading tree. Annual producer of heavy crops. A recent U Mass study showed resistance to apple maggot fly. Bears young; remove fruit for the first year or two to avoid stunting growth. Susceptible to scab. Blooms midseason. Z4-5