Vintage Virginia Apples

      ...from the rich orchard heritage of Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains

Fast Facts About Apples!

• Apples have been known as the "queen of fruits" in temperate climates since before recorded time.

• Why? Apples store well and can provide fresh produce for nearly an entire year -- a valuable quality before the invention of mechanical refrigeration or rapid transportation to far-flung markets. Dried or made into cider, apples became an important mainstay of the diet.

• More than 1,000 named varieties of apples were introduced to North America alone by 1900.

• Apples do not reproduce true from seed. Propagation depends on grafting the desired variety onto a reliable rootstock.

• Albemarle County, Virginia, was once a major orchard growing area. Thomas Jefferson grew about 18 varieties of apples at Monticello. Many of these are being cultivated at Rural Ridge Orchards today.