Synonyms: Delaware, Bread and Cheese, Romanite, Seek No Further of Pennsylvania, Striped Rambo. Also simply Rambo, but there are other varieties that use this name.

Identification: Medium size, round flattened. The base colour is greenish yellow over which is a dense pattern of dull red stripes. Abundance of large, light coloured lenticels. The stem is medium length, set in a deep and narrow, russetted cavity. The calyx is large and closed, set in a wide basin which is often rippled. The skin tends to be tough.

Characteristics: The flesh is yellowish, fine grained and firm. Rich flavour, sweet-tart. Highly aromatic. Does not bruise.

Uses: An excellent eating apple, it holds its shape when baked, makes a delicious apple jelly. Also used for making cider.

Origins: Arose in the New Sweden colony on the Delaware River (U.S.A.), most likely as a seedling raised from pippins brought across the Atlantic from Sweden by Peter Gunnarsson Rambo in 1637. Parentage unknown.

Cultivation: Moderately vigorous, upright spreading tree. Produces moderate biennial crops. Wood is somewhat brittle. Produces heavy crops and needs to be thinned to maintain fruit size. Tolerates Hardiness Zone 4. A greyish bloom develops on the skin when the apple is ripe.

Ploidism: Diploid. Self sterile.

Notes: Not widely grown today. Tough skin, dull colouring, russet patches make it a poor seller, but highly praised by those familiar with it. Still offered by some nurseries that specialize in heritage varieties.

Harvest: Ready to be picked late in the fourth period and into the early fifth.

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