CHERUB

SKILLCULT APPLE BREEDING PROJECT

This page is for sharing information on my seedling apple Cherub

Cherub is a cute little pink fleshed apple grown from seed that I pollinated in 2013. It is a cross between Wickson Crab and Rubaiyat. This little “crab” apple is not crabby. If it has a fault, it’s maybe a little too polite actually! There was a recent discussion on the North American Scion Exchange facebook page about people’s favorite crab apples. The usual suspects, Chestnut, Wickson, Trailman and Centenial seemed to dominate the conversation. I think Cherub will work it’s way into that conversation as it is distributed and fruited more. Of those I’ve fruited here, I would put it below Chestnut and Wickson and above Trailman. There are many more excellent small apples with crab apple ancestry on the way, but for now, this is a fun and interesting one that I think people will enjoy growing and eating. While I think Chestnut and Wickson are probably better apples overall, Cherub is maybe more interesting, and no doubt some will think it is better.

This apple inherited traits of both of it’s parents. The skin can be quite red and pretty striking when well ripened in good light. Beneath the surface, the flesh varies from mottled pink to solid pink, depending on ripeness and probably other factors. Like it’s parent Rubaiyat, and many other red fleshed apples, it has some flavor reminiscent of berries. I have also tasted rose petal and burnt sugar or caramel. Besides those aromatic flavors, Cherub inhereted some of Wickson’s savory flavor, or Umame. Taken all together, this flavor combination is at times a little bit odd, but it is certainly not boring! I think some will find fault in in the flavor profile, while others will find intrigue. (I find both I guess lol.) That is to be expected. Apple tasting is subjective. I think if I could improve cherub, I would add a little more acid to my taste. Early in the season, it is balanced enough, but late in the season, it can become a little sugary and polite, which can have a cloying effect. A friend of mine said I have a real winner in Cherub, because he likes low acid fruit. The apple can be very sweet like it’s parent Wickson, my notes say 24%. Most others should not expect sugar levels this high, but it is on the high end of the spectrum here.

Cherub was the first apple to bear out of the 2013 seedlings at only five years old. That is the second fastest bearing seedling apple ever for me, so it appears to be precocious. It also has borne most years since. The fruit hangs on the tree well. As it hangs the flavor changes. The texture also changes. I’ve not seen it go meally at all, it actually becomes oddly watery and tender, almost like the flesh of a stone fruit. Those traits make for a long eating season.

All things considered, Cherub is a fun and intriguing little apple that I think a lot of people will appreciate. It will certainly have a place in breeding, and I have used it since it first began fruiting. I’ve planted many seeds myself and sent out a lot of open pollinated and hand pollinated seed to others. I suspect that if people could taste a pool of the best crabs, it might end up ranking in the top 5 for many people. But, as I said, I think there are equivalent and better crab apples in the works and considering how many seeds I’ve sent out of the best ones, and many seeds of the best crossed with the best, those seeds have almost certainly already been planted! Cherub is now in that crab apple breeding stable.

As with all of my new varieties, there is no place to buy grafted trees. I’ve sent out quite a bit of grafting wood now and Cherub will be circulating among grafters and fruit collectors. I have little doubt that it will end up in some scion and fruit tree catalogues eventually. Although it would be easy enough to tag on a breeders thank you fee to my varieties, it is likely that I will see little if any revenue from those sales. That is too bad, because I can always use more funds to continue this and other projects. Support through Patreon or other donations helps with that. At this point, if I can get a new homestead, I plan to continue breeding with this and other apple seedlings I’ve created and carry the citizen effort toward more interesting and diverse apples forward. Onward!