Apples · 2027 season
Red McIntosh Apple Tree
Malus domestica
Needs a partnerTangy, tender and aromatic. Excellent for applesauce.
- #7 container
- About 1.25" caliper
Pick up in Pittsgrove, NJ, typically in March. Pay cash, check, Venmo or PayPal at pickup.
McIntosh is the tangy, aromatic, tender-fleshed apple that's been a Northeast staple for more than a century. It cooks down quickly, which makes it one of the best apples for applesauce.
‘Red McIntosh’ is a selection with better red color. McIntosh prefers cooler summers; here it ripens a little earlier and softer, but the flavor is still classic Mac.
Cortland, its own offspring, is a natural partner.
McIntosh was found by John McIntosh in Ontario in the early 1800s. Ripe apples tend to drop, so pick promptly.
How it tastes
Tangy-sweet and very aromatic, with the spicy, wine-like ‘Mac’ flavor. The flesh is tender and juicy and cooks down into smooth sauce.
At a glance
- You get
- #7 container, about 1.25" caliper (trunk thickness 6 inches above the soil; each tree varies a little)
- Hardiness zones
- USDA 4–8 (best in cooler summers) (Salem County is 7)
- Blooms
- Early to mid season
- Ripens
- Late August to early September
- Starts bearing
- Usually 2–4 years after planting
- Mature size
- Depends on rootstock; ask us
- Pollination
- Needs a partner
- Botanical name
- Malus domestica
- Price
- $88 each, paid at pickup
- Pickup
- Pittsgrove, NJ, typically in March
The fruit
- Looks
- Small to medium, red over green, tender white flesh
- Flavor
- Tangy and aromatic
- Best for
- Fresh, Sauce, Cider
- Keeps
- A couple of months cold, but it softens
Pollination
Needs a different apple (or a flowering crabapple) blooming nearby. Any of the partners below will do it.
Good partners from our list
Growing tips
Watch for: Very susceptible to apple scab; also fire blight and mildew. Very resistant to cedar-apple rust
- Full sun (at least 6–8 hours) and soil that drains well. Avoid low spots where water sits in spring.
- Mature size depends on the rootstock the tree is grafted onto. Ask us if space is tight.
- Water deeply once a week through the first summer, more often in heat waves.
- Pick off all fruit for the first two years. After that, thin the young fruit to one apple per cluster in early summer for bigger apples and a crop every year.
- Prune in late winter while the tree is dormant to open up the center to light and air.
Spray schedule: Apple Pest Control Schedule for New Jersey Home Orchards (Rutgers Cooperative Extension, fact sheet FS112)
New to planting fruit trees? Read our step-by-step planting guide: square hole, graft above the soil, native soil, and no fruit for the first two years.
Photos show the variety, not the exact plant you’ll get. Reservations are for the 2027 season, picked up at our farm in Pittsgrove, NJ, typically in March, and aren’t guaranteed until we confirm them. Questions? Ask us or call or text (856) 345‑4538.
