Apples are Crazy
Apples are insane! I grew up in Issaquah, Washington. About 3 hours away from Wenatchee, Washington, the “Apple Capital of the World”! Even though I was only a soccer game or tournament away from venturing over the Cascades to get to apple country, I never knew all the crazy facts about apples until recently. So in lieu of my recent awakening of the power of the apple, I give you some easily google-able facts about apples—-
The most reliable way to maintain the desired characteristics of a fruit tree is through grafting. This process involves taking a scion or bud chip from the desired parent tree (e.g., a Granny Smith apple tree) and attaching it to a compatible rootstock. Over time, the two parts heal together and grow as one tree. All growth from the rootstock is removed, ensuring that the new tree retains the characteristics of the scion variety. This method is called "asexual reproduction."
The fruit itself is simply a vessel for the seeds, which carry traits from past generations. This means that if you plant a Honeycrisp apple seed, the resulting tree may not produce Honeycrisp apples at all. Instead, the fruit may display characteristics from anywhere in its genetic lineage, making the outcome unpredictable. (© 2026 Stark Bro's Nurseries & Orchards Co.)
Apple trees take 4-5 years to produce their first fruit. A standard size apple tree starts bearing fruit 8-10 years after it is planted. A dwarf tree starts bearing fruit in 3-5 years. (©2026 Apple Holler.)
There are more than 2,500 varieties of apples grown in the United States, and they come in all shades of red, green and yellow. (©2026 Apple Holler.)
Johnny Appleseed (real name John Chapman) was yes, a real person, and yes, he planted apple trees all over parts of the United States, and he wasn’t poor. Back then, land could be claimed if you created a permanent homestead, and one of the ways to do that was to plant 50 trees to start an orchard. Chapman planted trees, and then later would sell “his” land to people. (©2026 Apple Holler.)
Apples are members of the rose family. (©2026 Apple Holler.)
Crazy, Huh??