Apple Julia's Late Gold (57) & also (51)

Julia’s Late Golden: a new apple with a mission | Fruit Forum (wordpress.com)

https://fruitforum.wordpress.com/2014/04/01/julias-late-golden-a-new-apple-with-a-mission/

Julia’s Late Golden named by Mary Hember after her daughter who died far too young in her early thirties from leukaemia. The apple is a chance seedling that sprang up in a rough patch of ground at the bottom of Mary’s garden in Codford, Wiltshire and introduced by the Triscombe Nurseries of Somerset.

In September 2002 the Hember family first noticed a rather tall and slender tree growing behind a large willow. ‘Why did you plant an apple tree there’ asked Julia. But it was not planted and in Mary’s words ’it had arrived unbidden, the product of a core thrown into the shrubbery which had grown unnoticed for two or three years.’ The tree, although overshadowed by the willow, was laden with golden fruit. These proved good to eat, excellent for ‘Tart Tatin’ – as the slices of apple kept their shape when cooked – and it made a flavoursome juice.

In the following years the tree cropped heavily and regularly and it flowered late giving the blossom a good chance of escaping any late spring frosts. The fruits ripened to deep yellow, often blushed with colour, and stored well. This chance seedling had produced a multi-purpose apple with a number of points of recommendation.

Mary decided to bring the apple to wider notice and at the same time raise funds for research into leukeamia, the disease that had so cruelly taken Julia’s life away in 2003. Triscombe Nurseries agreed to propagate trees, a bundle of scion wood went off from Wiltshire to Somerset and the Nurseries introduced ‘Julia’s Late Golden’ in their 2007 catalogue. For every tree sold a donation is made to Saint Bartholomew’s Hospital in London, where Julia was treated.

Wiltshire has adopted Julia’s Late Golden as one of the county’s own indigenous apples. Wiltshire Wildlife Trust is planting it in their community orchards and it has even found a place in a royal garden. When the Queen visited Wiltshire in 2012, she was presented with a tree, which is now growing at Windsor Castle.

Fruit Forum

https://www.frankpmatthews.com/catalogue/fruit-trees/apple/julias-late-golden/#additional-details

Julia's Late Golden™ | Frank P Matthews

Description:

Julia's Late Golden™ is a very special variety. A strikingly attractive large conical golden apple, crisp with a good sweet/acid balance. Keeps well into the new year. The tree is strong growing, healthy and predominantly tip bearing.

Cooking and juice:

Cooks extremely well also holding its shape and can be used in tarte tatin, for instance, and where a cooked apple is required to be decorative too.  It is also absolutely delicious just poached with honey and makes the most fabulous tasting juice.

Julia's Late Golden™ History:

Named in memory of Julia Hember who died from leukaemia in 2003 aged 33. Julia spotted this tree growing in her parents' garden in Wiltshire. It had appeared as a spontaneous seedling and had grown quite large producing apples which proved delicious. It was subsequently identified as unique by Dr Joan Morgan. Naturally, It was named in memory of Julia.

Donation:

All trees sold will offer a donation to the Centre for Haemato-Oncology at Barts Cancer Institute. 

Julia Hember was a talented photographer and some of her unusual images can be seen in her book ‘They sing to me, with echoes of time’. All proceeds from the book also go to the same charity. Available online at YPD Books. YPD Books - They sing to me, with echoes of time 

on MM106 root stock  

Most fruit trees are grafted. That is the roots are are not the same as the above ground part. So you can select not only the variety of fruit, but how you want it to grow. 

https://www.rhs.org.uk/fruit/fruit-trees/rootstocks

Name of rootstock: MM106 (semi-dwarfing)

Suitable for: All forms except standards

Start fruiting: After three or four years

Ultimate height as trained as bush: 3-4m (10-13ft) x 4m (13ft)

Growing conditions: Tolerant of a range of soils including grassed orchards and poor soils. The most widely used rootstock, but unsuitable for small gardens.

Staking: 5 years; longer in exposed locations

Spacing: 3.6 (12ft) with 4.5m (15ft) between the rows