The Roxbury Russet is an apple cultivar. It is believed to be the oldest variety of apple bred in the United States, having first been discovered and named in the mid-17th century in the former Town of Roxbury, part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony southwest of (now part of) Boston.
It is a greyish-green russet apple known for its good winter keeping qualities as well as its suitability for making cider and juice. It is not widely grown or commercially available due to general commercial disfavor for russet varieties; the dull and heavily marked face makes it hard to sell now. The yellow-green flesh is firm and coarse-textured, suited for eating fresh and cooking. It is available from growers that specialize in heirloom plants. It ripens from September to October, and so is commonly available in autumn in farmer's markets in the Northeast. Each apple contains 12.87% sugar that ferments to 6% alcohol in hard cider production.
The roxbury russet was first grown in Roxbury, Massachusetts by Joseph Warren, who died in 1755 of a broken neck after falling from a ladder while picking apples. Propagation wood (it propagates by grafting) was taken to Connecticut soon after 1649.
Thomas Jefferson planted a number of 'Roxbury Russet' trees in Monticello's South Orchard in 1778.
Famous quotes containing the word russet:
“We saw by the flitting clouds, by the first russet tinge on the hills, by the rushing river, the cottages on shore, and the shore itself, so coolly fresh and shining with dew, and later in the day, by the hue of the grape-vine, the goldfinch on the willow, the flickers flying in flocks, and when we passed near enough to the shore, as we fancied, by the faces of men, that the fall had commenced.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)