Plunging for Apples

"This is no ordinary apple, it's a magic wishing apple. Yes! One bite, and ALL your dreams will come true."

Ah yes, we all remember those infamous words to sweet little Snow White from the old (not to mention really beauty challenged) witch (a.k.a. the Evil Queen). Luring the poor, innocent child to her doom, temporary as it was, with a shiny, plump, and juicy-looking apple. The apple was purportedly the fruit that also led poor Adam to HIS doom; well, it and his female counterpart of course.

Many of us can remember the first time we bit into one of these delicious orbs of the gods. The apple. I don't know that I have ever met anyone in my life who doesn't, at the very least, "like" apples. I happen to be quite a lover of them and have always wanted to grow my own. Well, or wanted my dear hubby (DH), the gardener, to grow them.

So I know what you're thinking..."You live in Northeast Texas." I KNOW I KNOW!! Apples don't GROW in Texas.

Or DO they???

In actuality, there are several varieties of apple that grow well in Texas. Cultivars include Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Gala, Holland, Jerseymac, Mollie's Delicious, Fuji, and Granny Smith (taken from the Texas A&M AGRILIFE EXTENSION Aggie Horticulture website). Three (or was it four) years ago, DH planted several apple trees just for me, to be part of our natural orchard. I think they include several of the varieties above. But I wanted to carve out a little bite of my own apple territory and try a little experiment with THE best tasting (seriously) apple the world over. It's a little-known apple with the name of Opal. Oh...my...GOSH this little yellow gem is to absolutely die for in a horrific way (okay, it's not THAT good). It's gorgeous, small, crispy, and tastes just like a SweetTart (one of my favorite Halloween treasures). It really is amazing.

So, I carefully removed the seeds from three or four Opals (before devouring them) and placed them on a paper towel for several weeks. Then, I put them in a little snack bag, carried them outside, and...

...planted them in two tiny pots.

Then, I watered them and placed them in the front of the garage, with a lot of other plants that we plan to put in the ground.

Apple trees will grow from store-bought seeds, although they will likely not be anything like the trees on which the apples grew originally (which is really too bad); but, even though the trees won't produce the lovely Opals, it should be interesting and quite fun to see what they DO grow. This is the first of the long, long journey (about six to 10 years, evidently) of my little Opal apple trees.

Stay tuned...