Malus domestica Cox's Orange Pippin - Self Fertile
Cox's Orange Pippin is one of the single most popular English apples around today and it's all down to their superb flavour, which has been described as "nutty", "intensely honeyed", "intricately aromatic", "melon and mango like" and even spicy! While it certainly tastes nothing like a chilli pepper, it really does explode with taste sensation and the flesh is soft and firm at the same time - a hard act to follow. The orange in the name refers to the rich yellow glow of the apple's skin, which is speckled and striped with red, giving a fairly orange overall appearance from a little distance. They juice very well and can be used as a sweet component in a cider mixture. Many of these apples that are on sale in the supermarkets here are from New Zealand and the flavour of an imported apple will never compare to a fresh, home grown one. Pick your fruit at the end of September / beginning of October and use within a few weeks.
Cox's Orange Pippin: History and Parentage
Only one parent, the Ribston Pippin is known. Richard Cox of Colnbrook Lawn, a retired brewer, raised it in the 1820's and it was first sold commercially by Charles Turner some twenty or thirty years later. It was not until 1962, however, that it finally received a First Class Certificate from the Royal Horticultural Society.
Apple Tree Pollination guide for Cox's Orange Pippin
Your trees are a self-fertile breed of Cox. All the same, a pollination partner will usually improve the crop a bit. They are in the mid season category and can cross pollinate with most other apple trees, as long as they do not flower very early or very late.
Rootstocks, Growing Notes and Planting Advice for Cox's Orange Pippin
All of our apple trees are grown on MM106 rootstocks. These give you the choice of growing a 4-5 metre tall orchard tree or training your tree into a restricted form. Cox's Orange Pippin trees are hardy and do well in cold areas, but their flowers are frost tender and your crop can be severely reduced by a harsh late frost (not that we see many of those down South but up in Scotland it is much more likely). There are two ways to help prevent this: cover your plants when there is a frost warning or plant them where they will be in shade until about 9.30 am in early May (when the trees are in flower) - this will allow the frost to melt slowly, reducing the amount of damage that is done.
Now, the bad news about Cox's Oranges is that they are susceptible to every common apple tree disease going and are totally unsuited to organic growing. You will probably need to protect them against Scab, Canker, Mildew and Fireblight. In addition, they are sun hungry and will fail to fruit well if they are not in full sun for the best part of the day. They also require Potash fertilizer every year that they are in fruit - apply it according to the instructions for your particular product. As long as you give your trees will need a bit of special care, you are sure to be delighted with the quality of fruit that they produce.
Remember - potted trees that are planted from spring onwards will need thorough watering every week until their leaves fall in autumn, unless there is very heavy rainfall.
If you are unclear about fruit tree sizes take a look at our Guide to Fruit Tree Sizing.
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