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Golden Russet Apple on B.118 (Spring 2025)


A prized heirloom for fresh eating and cider. Also known as American Golden Russet, Bullock.

Golden Russet is vigorous, productive, and a reliable annual cropper (an uncommon quality for an heirloom). It is resistant to scab and cedar-apple rust, but susceptible to fireblight. Care should be taken when pruning, as this is a tip-bearing tree.

This apple is one of the most prized among apple connoisseurs, ranking with Cox's Orange Pippin in terms of flavor quality. It is a medium-sized apple that is russeted bronze over greenish gold and speckled with white lenticels. The flesh is creamy and dense, yielding a rich, aromatic juice that is high in sugar and acid and low in tannin. Golden Russet is highly esteemed among cider makers for its ability to reliably produce excellent juice, and it is often used for single-variety ciders. The fruit stores exceptionally well, remaining crunchy and flavorful throughout winter. Tasters often describe the flavor of Golden Russet as "nutty," but this doesn't even begin to capture the delightful intensity of its honeyed sweetness. (From WSU: Tannin (percent tannic acid): 0.10; Acid (percent malic acid): 0.66; pH: 3.58; SG: 1.061; oBrix 15.4.)

"Golden Russet" is one of the more difficult varieties to pin down. Over the years, dozens of different apples have been so named and contradictory descriptions of the various Golden Russets abound; In Apples of North America, Tom Burford says that he once made a list of more than twenty apples that have been referred to as Golden Russet. These days, there appear to be two commonly-sold variants in North America. The Golden Russet from Cummins Nursery ripens later than the other variant–at the end of October in upstate NY. The russeting is extensive, with almost no smooth patches. It is closest in form to what Beach in Apples of New York calls "Bullock" or "American Golden Russet."

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Golden Russet is vigorous, productive, and a reliable annual cropper (an uncommon quality for an heirloom). It is resistant to scab and cedar-apple rust, but susceptible to fireblight. Care should be taken when pruning, as this is a tip-bearing tree.

This apple is one of the most prized among apple connoisseurs, ranking with Cox's Orange Pippin in terms of flavor quality. It is a medium-sized apple that is russeted bronze over greenish gold and speckled with white lenticels. The flesh is creamy and dense, yielding a rich, aromatic juice that is high in sugar and acid and low in tannin. Golden Russet is highly esteemed among cider makers for its ability to reliably produce excellent juice, and it is often used for single-variety ciders. The fruit stores exceptionally well, remaining crunchy and flavorful throughout winter. Tasters often describe the flavor of Golden Russet as "nutty," but this doesn't even begin to capture the delightful intensity of its honeyed sweetness. (From WSU: Tannin (percent tannic acid): 0.10; Acid (percent malic acid): 0.66; pH: 3.58; SG: 1.061; oBrix 15.4.)

"Golden Russet" is one of the more difficult varieties to pin down. Over the years, dozens of different apples have been so named and contradictory descriptions of the various Golden Russets abound; In Apples of North America, Tom Burford says that he once made a list of more than twenty apples that have been referred to as Golden Russet. These days, there appear to be two commonly-sold variants in North America. The Golden Russet from Cummins Nursery ripens later than the other variant–at the end of October in upstate NY. The russeting is extensive, with almost no smooth patches. It is closest in form to what Beach in Apples of New York calls "Bullock" or "American Golden Russet."


The Fruit

Fruit Type

Category: Apple
Subcategory: Heirloom, Cider, Cold-Hardy

Fruit Uses & Storage

Uses: fresh eating, cider, baking, storage
Cider classification: sharp
Storage duration: three plus months (approximate, depending on storage conditions)

Fruit Appearance

Skin color: russeted
Flesh color: cream

Fruit Origins

Parentage: unknown
Origin: America
Introduced in: 1700s
Introduced by:

The Environment

Calendar & Geography

USDA zones: 4 - 6
Chill hours: 1000
Ripening date: Nov 03 (approximate, in New York State) + 49 days after McIntosh

Tree Height & Spacing

Rootstock: B.118 Rootstock
Rootstock size class: Semi-Standard (90% of Standard)
Tree spacing (natural spread of tree): 24'
Good for wildlife planting? N

Diseases & Pests

Fireblight: Susceptible
Apple Scab: Resistant
Cedar-Apple Rust: Resistant

Pollination

Pollination Factors

Bloom group: 2
Is it self-fertile? N
Is it fertile? Y
Ploidy: Diploid
Rootstock size class: Semi-Standard (90% of Standard)

Pollination Partners

This table shows the first few results from a full search for pollenizers of Golden Russet Apple on B.118. Please see our Pollenizer Search to run other queries and read how the application uses various factors. Also read more about fruit tree pollination.

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Honeycrisp Apple on B.118 2025 7
Cortland Apple on B.118 2025 7
Wolf River Apple on B.118 2025 6
King David Apple on MM.111 2025 5

See all pollination matches for Golden Russet Apple on B.118






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