All three varieties are “open release” to orchards across the country, meaning growers in the State of New York and across the U.S. will be able to offer the new varieties without licensing exclusivity.
Susan Brown, the Herman M. Cohn Professor of Agriculture and Life Science, said the release gives growers a competitive edge by allowing them to replace older apples with what today’s consumers want — crunch, complexity, and a new twist on an American classic.
‘Cordera’
With ‘Cordera’, Brown accomplished a challenging task: breeding an apple that retains its flavor and texture while also staying scab resistant. Apple scab is a fungal disease that significantly reduces fruit yield and quality and poses a major threat for New England growers because it is common in wet springs.
In addition to test plots in orchards across New York Sate, Wegmans also has been testing ‘Cordera’ in Canandaigua, NY, for five years.
“Having access to the varieties that Susan Brown and Cornell are working on allows us to look into the future in way that will hopefully expose our customers to new and unique food experiences,” Mark Bowker, an orchard crop expert with Wegmans Organic Farm, said. “For us, disease resistance makes the performance of NY 56 stand out in our orchard. Of course, it always comes down to flavor, and we think it has that, too.”
Spanish for “lamb,” ‘Cordera’ was named after Brown’s predecessor, Robert Lamb, and his family. Lamb, who died in 1997, was an apple breeder at Cornell from 1948 to 1988 and met his wife Barbara at Cornell AgriTech (formerly the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station). Now their daughter, Betsy Lamb, is an ornamentals coordinator at Cornell’s New York State Integrated Pest Management program.
Brown said it is fitting this apple be named in Lamb’s honor since it is related to the variety ‘Liberty’, which he named in 1978 along with Herb Aldwinckle, Professor Emeritus of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology at CALS.
“Bob would have been thrilled to know this apple variety was named after him and our family,” Barbara Lamb said. “He was passionate about breeding apples and would be thrilled at how successful the apple breeding program is today at AgriTech.”
‘Pink Luster’
Brown spent 23 years working with the best attributes of ‘Honeycrisp’ and ‘Gala’ apples to perfect ‘Pink Luster’. Its bright pink-red skin, crisp texture, and juiciness make this new variety shine. ‘Pink Luster’ also matures in mid-September, which makes it well suited for on-farm sales and pick-your-own operations.
“NY73 has generated substantial interest at our orchard given how pleasingly different it is from the routine common list of apples,” John Halsey, the owner of the Milk Pail in Southampton, NY, said. “Some of the visitor comments we have heard are that it has beautiful color, medium to large size, making it fun and easy to pick, wonderful mild tart flavor, and very smooth, enjoyable skin texture.”
‘Firecracker’
‘Firecracker’ is being dubbed a “triple threat” – it is one of few varieties that works well for eating, baking, and hard cider production.
“’Firecracker’ has a partial russet skin, and it has a unique combination of acidity and sweetness that produces really complex and evolving flavors,” Brown said. “It’s ideal for anyone who wants to go on a culinary adventure.”
With the addition of ‘Cordera’, ‘Pink Luster’, and ‘Firecracker’, CALS will have released more than 69 apple varieties since 1880. The most recent varieties from Brown’s breeding program, ‘SnapDragon’ and ‘RubyFrost’, have been highly successful with growers across the state and are also exported to markets in Canada, Israel, and Asia.
“Research and thorough testing are crucial in making a really good apple, but that takes a whole team,” Brown said. “Research specialist Kevin Maloney, the Cornell AgriTech Field crew, researchers at Cornell AgriTech and the School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell Cooperative Extension, and the New York apple industry all deserve credit in collaborating to help deliver varieties that support the apple industry.”