Monticello Gardens

Common name: Early Harvest Apple, Prince's Harvest Apple

Family: Rosaceae (Rose)

Hardiness: USDA Zone 4

Life form: Deciduous tree

Usage: Ornamental, Edible

Comments: As the name indicates, this apple ripens early in the season. Philadelphia nurseryman Bernard McMahon recommended ‘Early Harvest’ as a “Summer Apple” in The American Gardener’s Calendar (1806). In 1791, Thomas Jefferson placed an order from the William Prince Nursery on Long Island for a large number of trees, including fruit trees like “6. of the very earliest apples you have.” Most likely Prince would have sent Jefferson ‘Early Harvest,’ which originated in New York and was considered by William’s son, Benjamin, to be “the earliest of all apples, fit for tarts in June, and when ripe is an excellent table fruit.”