Hidden in a 17th century walled garden, in rural Aberdeenshire, Pitmedden Garden houses the largest individual collection of apples across any National Trust for Scotland site, including some varieties believed to date back to the early 17th century, like the ‘Golden Pippin’. Head Gardener Scott H. Smith, talks to us about the impressive collection he manages in the garden.

“We have just reached that point I like to call the end of the apple cycle at Pitmedden Garden. This point is achieved once we harvest all the apples for the year and process them respectively before the cycle begins again with the January winter prune.”

Where Do They All Come From?

“During the apple harvest that begins typically around the end of August, it is always with a tinge of sadness that I pick them as they look so excellent on the carefully trained hosts. Due to the very hot, dry summer weather this year our crop was ready a couple of weeks earlier than usual.

“The apples are harvested across a range of trained types in the garden. We have trained espaliers, some centuries old, lining the main walls in the garden. We also have espaliered fences with gorgeous cultivars like ‘Bloody Ploughman’ and ‘Merton Worcester’ that surround the secluded sundial.

“Just beyond, the apple arch extends the collection featuring a mix of cultivars including ‘Catshead’, ‘Coul Blush’, ‘Galloway Pippin’, ‘Hawthorndean’, ‘Lass O’ Gourie’, ‘Oslin’, ‘Threave Castle’, and ‘White Paradise’.

“Additionally, we have an orchard of freestanding apples, cordons, and even step over apples, so called because you can quite literally step over them! The apples are grown on extremely dwarfing M27 rootstocks to restrict growth and make them suited to training in this fashion. The cultivars include ‘Adams Pearmain’, and ‘Chiver’s Delight’, ‘Aromatic Russet’, ‘Flower of the Town’, ‘Red Windsor’, ‘Red Belle de Boskoop’, ‘Wheeler’s Russet’, and ‘Yorkshire Aromatic’.

“Overall we have 156 varieties of apple, the largest individual collection across any National Trust for Scotland site.”

Waste Not

“At Pitmedden Garden, every apple and pear cultivar is picked then bagged into 1kg brown paper bags, graded 1st Class or 2nd Class, labelled with the cultivar name, date of origin, storage info, and taste profile. 1st Class is perfect with no flaws, blemishes, and a good stalk. 2nd Class is still perfectly usable but perhaps with a blemish or lesser quality stalk.

“The remaining apples unsuitable for either go for juicing or jelly production at a local producer (then made available in the tearoom), and those too small for that go to make cider at The Wee Cider Company. Any windfall apples on the ground or damaged ones get taken to the tearoom to be made into apple pies, crumbles, bakes, loaves, and sweet treats for sale on Apple Sunday.

“Not all apples made it to Apple Sunday because not all cultivars are available in big enough quantities each year to warrant picking and bagging for sale. If there are less than five bags worth, they are picked after Apple Sunday. We focus on the large croppers for consistency of sale on Apple Sunday, but of course, all the smaller amounts are never wasted.

“Early varieties of both apples and pears were made available to buy in the shop so as not to waste any that were poor storers.

Apple Sunday

“Our annual Apple Sunday event is where we sell all of our glorious bagged apples, pears, and any other ripe fruit we have had a chance to harvest such as plums, damsons, and hazelnuts. It occurs annually on the last Sunday in September.

“This year was yet another packed Apple Sunday event at Pitmedden Garden. We had 2500 visitors over the space of 6 hours. The entire place was at capacity by 12pm and we actually had to stop people from coming in until 1pm – it was manic!

“We sold just over 1000 bags of apples, all pears sold out, all damsons sold out. Many stallholders were sold out of their respective products too! Honey, cider, Apple juice, apple based hot sauces, crafts, apples bakes, and pies all sold! I walked 30,000 steps just parking the cars and helping sell apples in the apple tent over the 6 hours. I’m sure all staff were similarly exhausted too regardless of their roles on the day. We had many, many happy visitors though!”

This Year’s Haul

This year after harvesting, 67 varieties of apple were bagged and graded at Pitmedden Garden, and 3 varieties of pear, all of which were all made available for sale during Apple Sunday.

Sweet Dessert Types

• Discovery
• Early Red Dessert
• Early Worcester (slight tartness)
• Ellison’s Orange
• Epicure
• Fiesta
• Ingrid Marie
• Jester
• Jupiter (slight tartness)
• Katy
• Lady Sudeley
• Laxton’s Fortune
• Laxton’s Superb
• Lord Lambourne
• Meridian (slight tartness)
• Merton Worcester
• Norfolk Royal
• Steyne Seedling (slight tartness)
• Suntan (slight tartness)
• Sussex Mother (slight tart, aniseed)
• William Crump (pineapple, nutty)
• Worcester Pearmain

Non-sweet or Tart Dessert Types

• Adams Pearmain (nutty)
• Bloody Ploughman (mildly sweet)
• Brownlee’s Russet (tart)
• Early Windsor (slight tart, slight honey)
• Egremont russet (mildly sweet, nutty)
• Elektra (russet like)
• Flower of the town (very sharp)
• George Cave (moderate sweet, sharp)
• Kerry pippin (boysenberry, tart)
• Laxton’s Advance (aromatic, juicy)
• Merlin’s Apple (lemon flavour)
• Pixie (slight tartness, fresh)
• Sunset (crisp, fresh)
• Yellow Ingestre (sharp, fruity)

Cooker Types

• Arthur Turner
• Catshead (puree)
• Devonshire Quarrenden
• Early Victoria
• Grenadier (purees)
• Hawthornden (purees)
• Keswick Codlin (puree & jelly)
• Lane’s Prince Albert (puree)
• Lass O’ Gowrie
• Lord Derby (pies)
• Lord Suffield (puree)
• Monarch (puree)
• Peasgood nonsuch (salads, purees)
• Red Victoria (sauce)
• Scotch Bridget
• Stirling Castle (puree)
• Warner’s King (puree)
• Winter cockpit (puree)

Duel or Culinary Types

• Arthur Turner (baked apples)
• Balsam
• Charles Ross
• Crispin (salads, light cider)
• Early Julyan (purees)
• Emperor Alexander (winey flavour, sauce)
• George Fox
• Greenup’s Pippin (baked apples)
• Keswick Codlin (jelly & puree)
• Peasgood nonsuch (salads, purees)
• Pig Snout (salads)
• Red Victoria (sauce)
• Striped Beefing (sauce)
• Tom Putt (cider, juice)

Pear Types

• Conference
• Doyenne Du Comice
• Louise Bonne of Jersey