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Macoun apple trees

Macoun apples
Macoun is listed in the RHS Plants for Pollinators
  • Picking season: Late
  • Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
  • Pollination group: 3

Macoun is a McIntosh-style apple, widely grown in New England and with arguably the best flavor of its siblings. It is a sweet refreshing apple with a pronounced flower-like vinous flavor. The flesh has a soft crisp texture and plenty of juice.

Although it ripens late, Macoun is not a keeper - this is an apple that is definitely at its best when picked and eaten straight from the tree.

Macoun apple trees for sale

You can pre-order now for spring 2025

  • 1Dwarf 1-year bare-root tree $37.95
    Mature height: 6ft-9ft after 10 years
    G.41 rootstock
  • 2Semi-dwarf 1-year bare-root tree $37.95
    Mature height: 8ft-12ft after 10 years
    G.969 rootstock

How to grow

Macoun inherits most of the characteristics of the McIntosh family. It is happiest in the cooler zones of the north-east, and benefits from cool autumn nights to bring out the color and flavor.

As with most McIntosh offspring, Macoun is prone to over-cropping. To improve fruit size and quality it is usually necessary to thin the fruitlets in early June - one visitor to our website suggested thinning should be "merciless". This will also help to prevent the biennial bearing to which Macoun can be prone.

Macoun produces a vigorous tree that is fairly easy to grow. Despite a poor reputation for disease-resistance - it is susceptible to scab, canker and fireblight - Macoun nevetheless produces a very cold-hard vigorous tree and is easy to grow.

Advice on fruit tree pollination.

History

Macoun was developed by the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, at Geneva, in the early 1920s.

Macoun characteristics

  • Gardening skillAverage
  • Self-fertilityNot self-fertile
  • Pollination group3
  • Pollinating othersAverage
  • Picking seasonLate
  • UsesEating fresh
  • Keeping (of fruit)1 week
  • General resistanceAverage
  • FireblightSome susceptibility
  • CankerSome susceptibility
  • ScabSome susceptibility
  • Cedar apple rustSome resistance
  • Cold hardiness (USDA)Zone 3 (-40C)
  • Summer maximum temperaturesCool ( 20-24C / 68-75F)Warm (25-30C / 76-85F)Cold (< 20C / 67F)
  • Country of originUnited States
  • Period of origin1900 - 1949
  • Fruit colorCrimson

Similar varieties

  • See also Cortland
    Cortland
    Developed from McIntosh, Cortland is one of the most widely-grown Mac-style apples.
  • See also Empire
    Empire
    One of the most widely-planted McIntosh style apples, Empire has the Mac flavor but improves on it.
  • See also Enterprise
    Enterprise
    Enterprise is a modern American disease-resistant apple, good for eating fresh and cooking.
  • See also Fameuse
    Fameuse
    A very hardy north country apple, known both as the Snow Apple and Fameuse, and the probable parent of McIntosh.
  • See also McIntosh
    McIntosh
    A traditional versatile apple popular in the northern states of the USA. Also known as Macintosh.