Seriate pollinator duo for your pastries

This apple pollinator duo for your pastries brings together the varieties 'Belle de Boskoop' and 'Queen of the Pippins', which produce excellent cooking apples that are appreciated for making pies, fritters, clafoutis, and other baked goods. Planted in the same garden, these two apple trees that blossom together in spring pollinate each other, ensuring an abundant harvest from early September to late November. Bare-root fruit plants should be planted upon receipt, preferably in autumn.

This duo consists of:

- x1 'Queen of the Pippins' Apple Tree: a vigorous and productive variety, very resistant to cold and diseases. Highly appreciated in pastry making, it is thanks to its deliciously tangy and fragrant apple that the famous Tarte Tatin owes its success. Its fruits, about 7 cm (3in) in diameter, are covered with a red-yellow golden skin. Their flesh is pale, juicy, fine, and crunchy, both sweet and tangy, with a slight walnut taste that makes it irresistible. The harvest begins at the beginning of ripeness, in early September, and lasts until October. The Queen of the Pippins stores very well after harvest and can be consumed throughout the winter, until March. It will be necessary to thin it out to avoid small fruit size and the occurrence of diseases. This apple tree is an excellent pollinator.

- x1 'Belle de Boskoop' Apple Tree: a variety of good vigor and productivity. It produces large, irregularly round fruits, light green to yellow with red spots. Their flesh is granular, semi-crisp, juicy, and tangy. The harvest takes place in late October and November. They can be stored until March. This apple tree is resistant to canker, scab, and cold.

Individually labeled

The apple tree is native to Europe, including France, where its presence has been documented since antiquity. It is a tree with a semi-erect, elegant habit. Its deciduous foliage falls in autumn. It consists of very large, ovate, slightly hairy leaves that are greenish-brown on the upper side and whitish-green on the lower side, deeply toothed. The flowering occurs in April, and it is not afraid of frost. The apple tree is therefore suitable for cultivation in mountainous areas.

In the kitchen:

'Belle de Boskoop' and 'Queen of the Pippins' apples can of course be eaten as they are, but they are particularly appreciated in desserts and pastries. You can also use them in savory dishes (with black pudding, red cabbage, or sausages), or in combination with cheeses, for example.

A bush-trained fruit tree does not have a central leader (vertical main stem) but has branches radiating from its trunk. This particular shape allows for good penetration of sunlight and air into the canopy, which promotes the development and ripening of fruits while limiting the development of diseases.