Freedom Apple
Malus domestica 'Freedom'
Freedom is a bright red, crisp and juicy apple that is great for eating fresh, making cider, and cooking in sauce or pie. It has a sweet, sprightly flavor. Freedom is resistant to fire blight, mildew, cedar-apple rust, scab, and other diseases. These apples will store up to three months.
Produces fruit in 2-4 years
Bare root
Sourced from NY
Growing tips
- Planting apple trees on gentle slopes and/or on relative elevation allows cold or moist air to drain away from the plantings in a frost event. A 4-8% slope is ideal.
- Orchards require deep soil; at least 30 inches
- In June to July remove the smallest apples to encourage larger fruit
- Color indicates ripeness; the background color will be a green-turning to yellow when fully ripened. Taste to ensure ripeness. If starchy, leave a few more days.
- Pick apple by taking fruit in palm of hand, then lifting and twisting in one motion. Avoid pulling or yanking as you could pull the spur with next year's flower bud.
- Proper training and pruning of apple tree will maximize yield, productivity, and quality of the fruit
- Apply tree wrap in late autumn to prevent winter injury
|
Mature height (ft) |
18-21 |
|
Recommended spacing |
10-12 |
|
Sun preference |
Full |
|
Soil type preference |
Loam |
|
Soil moisture preference |
Well-drained |
|
Pollination |
Requires cross-pollination from different variety |
|
Harvest |
September to October |
|
Zones |
4-7 |
|
pH |
6.0-6.5 |
|
Uses |
Fresh eating, cider, applesauce, baking |
Resources
'FREEDOM' A New Disease-Resistant Apple, New York's Food and Life Sciences Bulletin, New York State Agricultural Experiment Station
Tree Fruit: Horticulture, Site Selection and Preparation in Vermont Apple Orchards, UVM Extension
Pruning and training apple trees, UMN Extension
Training and Pruning apple trees, UW Extension