Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Apple Varieties
Cultivated apple varieties were described as early as 323 BCE by Theo-
phrastus in Greece, and fruit specialists estimate that more than 10,000 vari-
eties have been named. Until recently, however, very few apple varieties
came from breeding programs; the vast majority arose as chance seedlings
or bud sport mutations on existing trees. That began to change in the
mid-1900s, and now university, government, and commercial breeding pro-
grams are developing many new apple varieties.
