WOTTON COSTARD An excellent apple from an ancient orchard at the nearby Wotton Estate. Friends of ours, Richard Ames and Carrie Fletcher found and brought some apples to us. The orchard originally formed part of Thomas Lovell’s cottage holding in the 17th century, but was separated by the enclosure of Wotton (the first enclosure by private Act of Parliament in the country) and/or dereliction/desertion/destruction of the old village, at the time when Capability Brown redesigned the gardens. He built the new ‘pleasure gardens’ just inside “The Old Orchard” which was seemingly left almost untouched for about three centuries. It still contains many old and interesting fruit trees, among them two large trees of this apple, both of which fell some years ago and re-rooted in the soft moist soil. They are very old. The variety may be the Grey Costard of Parkinson or Costard of Scott. It is not Catshead - the ribbing, waist to the fruit, flavour and keeping time exclude it. The presumed extinct Costard is the second earliest English apple to be recorded, in 1292. Parkinson mentioned the Gray and the Green Costard (assumed to be the extant Green Custard). In the Herefordshire Pomona of 1885 Hogg made a rare mistake in describing it. He mis-reported Parkinson by quoting that the “gray Costerd abideth not the winter.” Parkinson actually said “The gray Costerd is a good great apple, somewhat whitish on the outside, and abideth the winter.” The Wotton Costard keeps until March, is heavily marked with whitish patches and streaks, when immature, and matures to the image of the Gloucestershire Costard in the Herefordshire Pomona. It is a first rate apple, excellent for cooking, and which can be eaten for dessert later in the season. It is heavily ribbed; the skin is greenish-yellow but develops amber patches and red blushes and streaks on the side near the sun. The firm, pale flesh is juicy, sweet, tangy and fragrant, with a flavour which develops in richness when cooked. As a culinary apple it keeps its shape, is excellent for pies and tarts and will also make excellent sauces. The flowers are pink and white and very large. The old trees at Wotton are regular heavy bearers. Fully ripe in early November, the apples will keep with careful storing into the spring.
 

 
WYKEN PIPPIN A late dessert apple dating from around 1700, and believed to have come from a pip saved from an apple brought home from Holland or France by Lord Craven, and planted at Wyken, near Coventry. Small, golden fruits, with fine russet dots and a very fruity, intense flavour. Very popular in the 19th century. A well-shaped tree, which produces regular crops. It stores until late winter.

 

YELLOW BELLFLOWER An old American variety first recorded by Coxe in 1817. He remarked that ‘the original tree is said to be now standing on a farm in Burlington County, New Jersey, very large and old’. By 1826 it was in the collection of the London Horticultural Society. Scott recorded that the name was ‘Frenchified’ to Belle-Fleur so as to appear French and it then attracted a lot of foreign synonyms. A late season, large dual purpose apple ripe in October and storing to February. Lindley described it as large and oblong, with an irregular outline and skin of pale yellow with a blush in the sun but often without. The eye is closed and sunk in an uneven basin, the stalk is slender and sunk in a deep plaited cavity. The seeds are large and the capsules very large so the seeds rattle in it when shaken. He adds ‘a most excellent apple’. In Philadelphia it was highly esteemed as their principal winter apple. It cooks to a richly flavoured, golden purée. Trees have a spreading habit.

 
YELLOW INGESTRIE A dessert apple named after Ingestre Hall, the home of Earl Talbot, though the original tree was raised by Thomas Andrew Knight around 1800. The tree has small, regular, golden fruit, crisp with a very rich flavour. It was once popular for garlands and table decorations. The tree was also admired for its 'beautiful drooping habit' and pretty blossom, and was much grown in the North as well as in Kent. The apples are ready to pick in mid September, and store until the end of October. Martin Gadsbey of Stafford pointed out that the original and proper spelling of ‘Ingestrie’ was ‘Ingestre’, pronounced in the same way.

 

YORKSHIRE GREENING An old cooking apple very popular in Yorkshire, first listed by William Perfect of Pontefract, in 1769. Forsyth described it thus: ‘The York?hire Greening, is a good-?ized flatted Apple, of a dull-red colour, with a little green towards the eye. It keeps till Augu?t’. (August the following year). It cooks to a sharp, rich purée and has also been used as a cider sharp. The large, ribbed apples are dark green and colour up with brown red streaks and darker red in the sun. They are flecked with dark brown russet. The flesh is crisp, very juicy, 'with a brisk but pleasant acidity', according to Hogg. He suggests it only lasts to January. The trees have a dwarf and spreading growth.

 
YOUNG’S PINELLO A medium sized dessert apple, raised sometime before 1935 by Miss E.L. Young at Letchworth in Hertfordshire. Ribbed, with pale yellow skin and red stripes. The white flesh is sweet and fragrant. Pick early to mid-October and store into December.

 

ZABERGÄU RENETTE Raised in 1885 in Baden-Württemberg, southern Germany. An excellent dual purpose apple. The apples are a warm gold when ripe, with russet patches and tawny scarlet streaks. The flesh is yellow, with a good blend of sweetness and sharpness. A good cropper with very attractive blossom. Triploid. Ready for picking mid October, storing into March.