Variety	Typical Window
Acey Mac	Early to Mid September Typical
CrimsonCrisp	Mid to Late September Typical
Liberty	Late September Typical
Wolf River	Mid to Late September Typical
Bramley	Late September to Early October Typical
Kidd's Orange Red	Late September to Early October Typical
Rubinette	Late September to Early October Typical
Reine des Reinettes	Late September to Early October Typical

Variety	Typical Window
Pinova	Early to Mid October
Wagener	Early to Mid October
Senshu	Early October
Sweetie	Early October
Golden Russet	Mid October
Baldwin	Mid to Late October
Roxbury Russet	Mid to Late October
Ashmead's Kernel	Mid to Late October
RubyFrost	Mid to Late October
Westfield	Mid to Late October
Bonkers!	October
Brock	October
Stark Jumbo	October
Shizuka	October
PoundSweet	October
EverCrisp	Late October
WineCrisp	Late October
LudaCrisp	Late October
Enterprise	Late October
Keepsake	Late October
Bottle Greening	Late October
Black Oxford	Late October
Blue Pearmain	Late October

Variety	Typical Window
GoldRush	Late October into November
Rome	November - Published 2026 Schedule

Late-season apples are some of the most interesting apples of the year. Many develop dense flesh, concentrated flavor, and excellent keeping ability.

As a general planning guide:

• Early: approximately the 1st through 10th
• Mid: approximately the 11th through 20th
• Late: approximately the 21st through the end of the month

These ranges are guides rather than guaranteed picking or shipping dates.

Apples ripen according to growing conditions, not a fixed calendar. Several factors can move harvest earlier or later:

• Spring bloom date
• Warm or cool summer temperatures
• Rainfall
• Drought
• Hours of sunlight
• Cool nighttime temperatures
• Storms and wind
• Tree age
• Crop load
• Orchard location

Even different orchard blocks of the same variety may mature at slightly different times.

No. A harvest date tells you approximately when we expect that variety to begin reaching maturity.

Fruit may be harvested over several days or weeks. We pack apples when they have reached the quality we want for flavor, texture, appearance, and storage.

A variety listed as "Late October" should therefore be understood as a harvest window rather than a guaranteed UPS pickup date.

Harvest season tells you when the apples come off the trees.

Availability tells you how long we still have good-quality fruit available for sale.

Some varieties may sell quickly after harvest. Other apples store extremely well under refrigeration and may remain available weeks or months after they were picked.

Our first major new-crop apples generally begin arriving in late August. Early varieties such as Ginger Gold, Gala, Honeycrisp, and Zestar lead us into the fall apple season.

Our anticipated 2026 Honeycrisp harvest begins in late August. Weather and maturity can move the exact starting date.

Our anticipated 2026 Gala harvest begins in late August.

Ginger Gold is one of our early apples. The anticipated 2026 harvest begins in late August.

Zestar is one of our first tastes of the fall crop. Our anticipated harvest is late August.

McIntosh is normally one of the early September highlights. Our anticipated 2026 harvest begins in early September.

Our Cortland harvest is anticipated for mid September.

Our anticipated AutumnCrisp harvest begins in late September.

Our 2026 Fuji harvest is anticipated for late September.

Empire is part of our early October harvest, with 2026 picking anticipated for early October.

Macoun is another classic Northeast apple that generally begins our harvest in early October.

Our anticipated 2026 Jonagold harvest begins in mid October.

Our anticipated Pink Lady harvest begins in mid October.

CandyCrisp is one of our late-season apples. Our anticipated 2026 harvest begins in late October.

Mutsu is a late-season apple. Our anticipated 2026 harvest begins in late October.

Northern Spy is one of our classic late-season pie apples. Our anticipated 2026 harvest begins in late October.

Stayman is a late-season apple with our anticipated harvest beginning in late October.

Winesap is another late-season favorite. Our anticipated 2026 harvest begins in late October.

Our anticipated 2026 Top Secret Apple harvest begins in late October.

Rome is one of our latest apples. Our current 2026 calendar lists the Rome harvest for November.

Late August normally starts with varieties such as Ginger Gold, Gala, Honeycrisp, and Zestar, along with Bartlett Pears and New Century Asian Pears.

September may bring Paula Red, McIntosh, Blondee, Silken, Acey Mac, Cortland, Red Delicious, SnowSweet, CrimsonCrisp, AutumnCrisp, Fuji, Liberty, and some early heirloom varieties.

October is our biggest harvest month. It may include Empire, Macoun, Pinova, Wagener, Jonagold, Pink Lady, Golden Delicious, SnapDragon, CandyCrisp, Cameo, Mutsu, Northern Spy, Stayman, Winesap, Top Secret, EverCrisp, WineCrisp, GoldRush, and many heirloom apples.

Rome is one of our signature November apples. Some very-late storage varieties, including GoldRush depending on the season, may also extend into this period.

Rome and several very-late-season apples generally finish our fresh harvest calendar. Late October and November are also important for storage apples that can continue providing excellent eating quality after harvest.

Our earliest major varieties usually include Ginger Gold, Gala, Honeycrisp, Zestar, Paula Red, McIntosh, Blondee, and Silken.

Some varieties may become available for preorder before harvest. A preorder allows you to place your order in advance, but it does not guarantee a specific shipping day. We begin packing once the fruit is ready and meets our quality standards.

Preorder simply means the apple is expected soon enough that we are accepting orders. The fruit may still be on the tree finishing its maturity, color, flavor, sugar development, and firmness.

Absolutely. Harvest month tells you when fruit comes from the tree, not necessarily when sales end. Good storage varieties can remain available long after harvest when properly refrigerated.

Many late-season apples are known for good keeping ability. Depending on the variety and storage conditions, examples include EverCrisp, GoldRush, Keepsake, Black Oxford, Roxbury Russet, Winesap, Stayman, Rome, and other firm late-season apples.

Refrigeration is best for maintaining apple quality.

• Use your refrigerator crisper drawer.
• An open box in the refrigerator also works well.
• Allow apples some airflow.
• Do not tightly seal them for long-term storage.
• Keep them away from onions, garlic, and strongly scented foods.

Apples can absorb odors from nearby foods. Unless you enjoy onion-flavored apples, give them their own space.

Different apples naturally have different skin thickness, flesh density, sugar-acid balance, respiration rates, and storage characteristics. Many late-season apples were historically valued precisely because they could remain usable well into winter.

Yes. Apples remain living fruit after harvest. Aroma, texture, sweetness, and acidity can continue changing during storage. Some varieties are at their best immediately after harvest, while others become more balanced after a period of storage.

Temperature, sunshine, rainfall, drought, harvest timing, crop size, and even individual orchard location can influence sweetness, acidity, firmness, color, aroma, and juiciness. Apples are agricultural products, not factory-made products.

Heirloom varieties may be grown in smaller blocks or on fewer trees, and many were never selected for the uniformity modern commercial varieties are expected to provide. Shape, color, ripening, flavor, and yield can vary more from season to season.

Usually not during the same season. Heirlooms are generally harvested once per year in relatively small quantities. Once that year's crop is gone, the next opportunity is normally the following harvest.

Our heirloom season generally builds from September through October, with many of the later heirlooms arriving in mid or late October. Because quantities are limited, availability can be brief.

Heirloom apples were often selected for flavor, cooking ability, storage, cider, local growing conditions, or family tradition rather than perfect cosmetic uniformity. They may be russeted, unevenly colored, oddly shaped, or quite different from modern supermarket apples.

Water core can appear as translucent, glassy-looking areas inside certain apples. It is associated with natural sugars accumulating in areas of the fruit and can sometimes create a honeyed sweetness. Some heirloom apples, including Baldwin in certain seasons, may show this naturally.

Often, yes. Early apples give us the first fresh, juicy flavors of the new crop. Many late-season varieties develop denser flesh, stronger flavor, greater acidity or sweetness, and excellent storage characteristics.

There is no single answer because several varieties overlap. After the late-August Honeycrisp harvest begins, September brings apples such as McIntosh, Paula Red, Cortland, SnowSweet, AutumnCrisp, Fuji, and others.

As Macoun arrives in early October, the orchard moves toward Jonagold, Pink Lady, Golden Delicious, SnapDragon, Mutsu, CandyCrisp, Northern Spy, Stayman, Winesap, Top Secret, and many late heirlooms.

An apple can look ready before its internal maturity is where we want it. Waiting can improve sugar development, flavor, aroma, seed maturity, firmness, and storage performance. Our goal is not to be first - it is to pick the apple at the right time.

Yes. Elevation, slope, sun exposure, soil, tree age, crop load, wind, and local temperatures can cause the same variety to ripen at slightly different times in different parts of an orchard.

Fruit on the same variety may mature over a period of time. Orchard crews may make multiple passes so fruit can be picked closer to optimum maturity rather than stripping every apple from the trees on one day.

No. Harvest dates are estimates based on our experience, expected maturity, and current growing conditions. Nature gets the final vote.

As the anticipated harvest window approaches, check Honeycrisp.com regularly. Some varieties may open for preorder before picking begins, while others become available once the crop is actually ready.

Harvest timing and shipping timing may not be identical for California and Arizona orders because those destinations can have special agricultural shipping requirements.

If you are ordering for California or Arizona, please use the current state-specific ordering information on Honeycrisp.com to see which varieties are eligible and when they can ship.

Some of our customer and orchard favorites for baking include:

• Winesap
• Rome
• Cortland
• Northern Spy
• McIntosh
• Honeycrisp
• Stayman
• Bramley

Many bakers prefer mixing two or three varieties because one apple can provide firmness, another sweetness, and another acidity and aroma.

Yes. If properly stored apples from an earlier harvest are still available when a later variety arrives, mixing them can produce excellent flavor. A sweet apple plus a tart apple is one of the easiest ways to build a more interesting filling.

Apple varieties were bred or discovered in many different climates and for many different purposes. Some ripen very early for immediate eating, while others historically remained on the tree late into autumn so they could be stored through winter.

Before modern refrigeration and year-round produce shipping, long-keeping apples helped families maintain fresh fruit well into winter. Storage ability was a major reason many historic apples survived for generations.

No. Skin color is only one clue. Apple maturity is influenced by variety, background color, starch conversion, seed maturity, firmness, sugar, acidity, and other characteristics. Some ripe apples remain green, yellow, russeted, striped, or only partially red.

Cool nights combined with sunny days often encourage red pigmentation in many varieties. Every year is different, which is one reason orchard fruit does not always look exactly the same from season to season.

Apples have been grown from seedlings, selected, grafted, crossed, and preserved for centuries. Different varieties were prized for fresh eating, pies, drying, cider, sauce, storage, local climate, disease tolerance, and family or regional tradition.