An attractive, highly disease-resistant apple, ideal for organic growers.
Suntan Apple on G.214 (Spring 2024)
A dessert apple of the highest quality, a Cox's Orange Pippin progeny. Also known as Malling Suntan.
A high vigor, spreading tree, Suntan is a reliable annual bearer, and the late bloom will be of benefit in areas where frost is an issue. It is susceptible to canker in damper climates and powdery mildew in arid ones. It is a triploid, and two diploid pollenizers should be present for full fertility.
This late-season apple has one of the most distinguished pedigrees of all the varieties we sell. It is an offspring of Cox's Orange Pippin and the ancient Court Pendu Plat. Suntan is often mentioned on English forums as a candidate for the "best eating apple ever" along with its fabled parent Cox's. From Cox's it has inherited both profundity of flavor and susceptibility to disease. The apple is slightly flattened, gold with orange-red stripes, and the flesh is firm, coarse, crisp, and juicy. Tasters find notes of citrus, pear, and vanilla. On our farm in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York, Suntan is a reliably productive tree with fruit that reaches watercored perfection in early October, and remains in excellent condition through the early winter. It is a staple of our holiday gift box offering.
Suntan was bred at the East Malling Research Station in Kent, England in 1956. It was introduced in 1974.
The Fruit
Fruit Type
Fruit Uses & Storage
Uses: fresh eating
Storage duration: one to three months (approximate, depending on storage conditions)
Fruit Appearance
Skin color: red
Flesh color: cream
Fruit Origins
Parentage: Cox's Orange Pippin x Court Pendu Plat
Origin: Kent, England
Introduced in: 1974
Introduced by: F. H. Alston and Ragan Watkins
The Environment
Calendar & Geography
USDA zones: 5 - 7
Chill hours: Not yet determined
Ripening date: Oct 27 (approximate, in New York State) + 42 days after McIntosh
Tree Height & Spacing
glossary
Rootstock: G.214 Rootstock
Rootstock size class: Dwarf (30% of Standard)
Tree spacing (natural spread of tree): 8'
Good for wildlife planting? N
Diseases & Pests
glossary
Powdery Mildew: Susceptible
Perennial Canker: Susceptible
Pollination
Pollination Factors
glossary
Bloom group: 5
Is it self-fertile? N
Is it fertile? N
Ploidy: Triploid
Rootstock size class:
Dwarf (30% of Standard)
Pollination Partners
This table shows the first few results from a full search for pollenizers of Suntan Apple on G.214. Please see our Pollenizer Search to run other queries and read how the application uses various factors. Also read more about fruit tree pollination.
See all pollination matches for Suntan Apple on G.214
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