Coxs Orange Pippin Apple Trees

Cox's Orange Pippin Apple Trees. Sold Bareroot, or as a Potted Mini Patio Tree.

Cox Orange Pippin apple trees carry quintessentially English eating apples that also juice very well. In a good year, this is one of the all-time best tasting apples anywhere. It has a wonderful juicy texture and a complex, tangy, aromatic taste with a hint of spices and suggestion of melons. It doesn't store for long, but the juice from any excess can be frozen indefinitely. The tree itself is quite slow-growing and upright; it's ideal for low maintenance cordons & espaliers. 

There is a price for perfection and the downside of all Coxs Orange Pippins is that they are more susceptible to disease than some other apple trees. They will generally be happier in the drier Eastern parts of the country, although we have a large stock tree here in Somerset that crop wonderfully. We do not spray it with chemicals (winter wash does not count as it is organic) but we do try to follow best practice. Water when it is dry. Mulch annually with well-rotted organic matter. Sweep up and burn fallen leaves. Pick off and destroy rotting fruit. Collect windfalls. If you keep your trees healthy, they will reward you with the best eating apples in the country.

Browse our full range of apple trees or see the full variety of fruit trees.

Characteristics of Cox Trees:

• Use: Eating. Soft and juicy flesh with a world-class flavour.
• Spur Bearer: suitable for cordons & espaliers, trained on wires.
• Tree's growth habit: Low vigour.
• Harvest: Last week of September & first week of October.
• Store & ripen in a cool, dry place: Use within 3 weeks.

Rootstocks:
Our Cox trees are grown on MM106 rootstocks, except for the cordons, which are grown on M9 rootstocks.

Pollination Partners for Cox:
Your trees are reliably self-fertile but will make the best crops when pollinated.
Cox is in pollination Group C.
This means that they will cross-pollinate with other apple trees in pollination Groups B, C and D.
This tree's flowers have poor frost resistance.

See our Guide to Apple Tree Pollination for a full list of partners & more tips about pollination.

Cox Disease notes:
Disease susceptibility: Scab, Canker (high), Mildew, Fireblight, Cedar Rust, Bitter Pit (moderate). Recommended alternatives are Core Blimey and Fiesta, which have similar flavour and better disease resistance.

Did You Know?
The original COP was bred around 1825 by Richard Cox of Buckinghamshire. One of its parents is thought to be the Ribston Pippin. The nurseryman Charles Turner began selling it in the 1850's. This self-fertile variety was developed from a sport of the original tree in Kent and released in 1994. It appears on any list of the greatest British eating apples.

How Apple Trees are Measured & Delivered:
Our bareroot fruit trees are delivered in up to 3 shapes, and you can buy selected apple trees as ready-made cordons and/or mini patio trees.
Maiden: This unbranched tree is the smallest starting size. You can train maidens into the other sizes, including espaliers and cordons.
Cordon: Cox are spur-bearers, so their maidens can be made into cordons and espaliers.
Bush: This is a style of freestanding tree with a short trunk of about 60cms. It will grow to about 3 metres tall.
Half-Standard: This is a freestanding style that will grow into a full sized, "normal" apple tree, about 4 metres tall.
Mini Patio Tree: Only sold pot-grown, these use a dwarfing rootstock to drastically reduce the tree's vigour and restrict the mature size. They are suitable for large patio containers, and for small gardens where a normal-sized bush or half-standard form won't fit.

For more details, take a look at our Guide to Fruit Tree Sizing.