Apple (Malus) Christmas Pippin® — Bush, 12L Container, M26

Christmas Pippin is one of the most exciting new English apples of recent years, and its discovery story is hard to beat. In 2003, Geffrey Rowson found the original tree growing as a chance seedling beside the M5 motorway in Somerset. It most likely sprang from a windfall from one of the orchards that once grew in the area. After careful trials it was introduced to gardeners in 2010, and it has quickly won a following for its Cox-style flavour on a more easy-going tree. The medium-sized apples have thin, golden-yellow skin flushed and streaked with red. The flesh is crisp, juicy and creamy, naturally very sweet, with a lovely aromatic quality and a gentle balancing sharpness. Pick the fruit in early October and store it somewhere cool, and true to its name it will keep until Christmas.

This bush tree has a short trunk and an open, branching crown. It is grafted onto the semi-dwarfing M26 rootstock and typically reaches around 2.5–3m tall at maturity, a good middle ground between a patio tree and a full-sized orchard tree that suits an average-sized garden. Plant in full sun in any reasonably fertile, well-drained soil, allowing around 2.5–3m between trees. M26 is less firmly anchored than more vigorous rootstocks, so stake the tree securely and keep the stake in place on exposed sites. Water well during dry spells while it establishes. Christmas Pippin flowers and crops generously and has good natural disease resistance. That makes it a rewarding choice for gardeners who love the flavour of Cox but want a more reliable tree.

Christmas Pippin is not self-fertile, so plant it near another apple from pollination groups 2, 3 or 4, such as Discovery, James Grieve or Cox Self Fertile. In most built-up areas, neighbouring trees will also help with pollination.

Each tree is hand-selected before dispatch.

Available from Pengelly Garden Centre.