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Tree comparisons
 Kingston Black | Sundance |  Liberty |  GoldRush |  Honeycrisp | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kingston Black is one of the premier English cider varieties and produces a bittersharp juice. | A high-quality late-season eating apple, with excellent flavor and disease-resistant qualities. | Liberty is a popular disease-resistant apple, large crops of bright red apples, similar to McIntosh. | GoldRush is a modern disease-resistant apple, like Golden Delicious but with a better tart/sweet balance. It is also one of the best new hard-cider varieties. | Honeycrisp is a cold-hardy disease-resistant apple - it shows just how good modern apples have become. | |
| remove | remove | remove | remove | remove |
Using
| Cider apple trees Kingston Black | Apple trees Sundance | Apple trees Liberty | Apple trees GoldRush | Apple trees Honeycrisp | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Picking season | Very late | Late | Late | Very late | Late |
| Uses | Hard cider | Eating fresh | Eating fresh Juice | Eating fresh Cooking Hard cider | Eating fresh |
| Cropping | Light | Good | Heavy | Heavy | Good |
| Keeping (of fruit) | 2-3 weeks | 3 months or more | 1-2 months | 3 months or more | 3 months or more |
| Flavor style (apples) | Sharper | Vinous | Sweeter | Sweeter | |
| Juice style | Bittersharp (cider) | ||||
| Fruit persistence | Normal ripening | Ripens over a period | Normal ripening | Normal ripening | Normal ripening |
Growing
| Cider apple trees Kingston Black | Apple trees Sundance | Apple trees Liberty | Apple trees GoldRush | Apple trees Honeycrisp | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gardening skill | Some needed | Average | Suitable for beginners | Suitable for beginners | Suitable for beginners |
| Self-fertility | Not self-fertile | Not self-fertile | Not self-fertile | Not self-fertile | Not self-fertile |
| Pollination group | 5 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Pollinating others | Average | Average | Poor | Average | Average |
| Ploidy | Diploid | Diploid | Triploid | Diploid | Diploid |
| Vigour | Average vigour | Average vigour | Vigorous | Average vigour | Weak growing |
| Precocity | Slow to start bearing | Precocious | |||
| Bearing regularity | Regular | Biennial tendency | Regular | Biennial tendency | Regular |
| Fruit bearing | Spur-bearer | Spur-bearer | Spur-bearer | Spur-bearer | Spur-bearer |
| Organic culture | Not-suitable | Suitable | Suitable | Suitable | Suitable |
Disease resistance
| Cider apple trees Kingston Black | Apple trees Sundance | Apple trees Liberty | Apple trees GoldRush | Apple trees Honeycrisp | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General resistance | Poor | Good | Good | Good | Good |
| Canker | Some susceptibility | ||||
| Scab | Some susceptibility | Very resistant | Very resistant | Very resistant | Very resistant |
| Mildew | Some resistance | Some resistance | Very resistant | Some susceptibility | |
| Fireblight | Very resistant | Some resistance | Some resistance | Some resistance | |
| Cedar apple rust | Some susceptibility | Very resistant | Very resistant | Some susceptibility | Some susceptibility |
| Bitter pit | Some susceptibility |
Climate
| Cider apple trees Kingston Black | Apple trees Sundance | Apple trees Liberty | Apple trees GoldRush | Apple trees Honeycrisp | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cold hardiness (USDA) | (5) -20F / -29C | (5) -20F / -29C | (4) -30F / -34C | (5) -20F / -29C | (3) -40F / -40C (4) -30F / -34C (5) -20F / -29C (6) -10F / -23C (7) 0F / -18C (8) 10F / -12C (9) 20F / -7C (10) 30F / -1C |
| Summer average maximum temperatures | Cool ( 20C - 24C / 68F - 75F) | Cool ( 20C - 24C / 68F - 75F) Warm (25C - 30C / 76F - 85F) | Cool ( 20C - 24C / 68F - 75F) Warm (25C - 30C / 76F - 85F) Hot (>30C / 86F) | Cool ( 20C - 24C / 68F - 75F) Warm (25C - 30C / 76F - 85F) Hot (>30C / 86F) | Cool ( 20C - 24C / 68F - 75F) Warm (25C - 30C / 76F - 85F) Hot (>30C / 86F) Cold (< 20C / 67F) |
Identification
| Cider apple trees Kingston Black | Apple trees Sundance | Apple trees Liberty | Apple trees GoldRush | Apple trees Honeycrisp | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country of origin | United Kingdom | United States | United States | United States | United States |
| Period of origin | 1850 - 1899 | 1950 - 1999 | 1950 - 1999 | 1950 - 1999 | 1950 - 1999 |
| Fruit color | Crimson | Green / Yellow | Crimson | Yellow / Orange | Orange / Red |
| Fruit size | Average | Large |