From the Living Museum
Otterson
- Origin
- Fameuse × Malus niedzwetzkyana; entered the USDA apple collection in 1992 (breeder unrecorded)
Portrait to be revealed
History & Stories
A red-fleshed bittersharp cider apple from Fameuse crossed with the Central Asian red crab, held by the USDA since 1992 and revived for cider at Michigan State University 1. Collectors’ variety.
Folklore & Name
Sparsely documented. Name of personal or place origin. Limited information available; further characterization from my orchard would be useful.
Digging into the History
Below my own notes, here is what the old fruit books and today’s collections record about this apple, kept apart from the stories people tell.
What we know
Otterson is a red-fleshed, bittersharp cider apple from a cross of Fameuse and Malus niedzwetzkyana, the red-fleshed Central Asian crab 1. It entered the USDA apple germplasm repository in 1992 1. Fedco says it was brought back into use at Michigan State University by plant geneticist Steve van Nocker and botanist Chris Gottschalk. They trialed more than a hundred red-fleshed varieties and picked Otterson for its size, vigour, disease resistance and deep red juice 1.
What we think: stories & traditions
Who was Otterson? We found no record of who bred it or whom it was named for. The name is probably a family name, but we can't confirm that.
Sources
- Fedco Trees, "Otterson Cider Apple." fedcoseeds.com/trees/otterson-cider-apple-7894
Curious about Otterson?
Email us at drgoss@honeytreeorchard.com.