Cream of the crop: The rare types first developed in Britain

KNOBBY RUSSET

Odd-looking fruit with rough surface first cultivated in Midhurst, Sussex in 1820. Its characteristic warts start developing in late summer. They are not a result of disease or rotting and the apple is palatable.

PITMASTON PINE

First arising in Herefordshire or Worcestershire in 1785, this type is described as ‘honey sweet with a hint of pineapple’ and has rough skin.

GREENUP’S PIPPIN

This large type was discovered in the late 1700s by a shoemaker named Greenup in his garden in Keswick, in the Lake District. It is known for its glossy skin and yellow tinge.

RED DEVIL

Named after its striking scarlet flush, this apple has pink flesh and juice. It was developed in 1975 by influential horticulturist Hugh Ermen in Kent.

HANWELL SOURING

Found in Hanwell near Banbury, Oxfordshire in 1820, this apple was named after its place of origin and its high level of acidity. Because of its sharp taste it is often used in cooking and in making cider.

RIVER’S EARLY PEACH

Picked at the right time, this apple can taste like peaches. It was raised by Rivers Nursery orchard in Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire in 1893.

CAPTAIN PALMER

This pale green, crisp variety arose as a chance roadside seedling in Gissing, Norfolk and in around 1900. Some say it was discovered by a wayside vagrant.

TEN COMMANDMENTS

Red apple dating back to before 1805 in Hertfordshire. Its name refers to ten red spots that feature around the core – visible when sliced in half.

LORD PECKOVER

This apple tends to be lopsided with a perfumed flesh. It was discovered in the 1920s at Peckover House in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire where it was named after First Baronet of Wisbech, Alexander Peckover.

PAM’S DELIGHT

Retired clerk Alfred Hull named this apple, raised in his garden in Luton in 1956, after his daughter Pam who died from cancer aged 28.