Wood Orchard in Sturgeon Bay could be offering organic apples in the future thanks to the University of Minnesota. The same breeding program that has brought SweeTango and Rave apples to Door County has now created the Triumph apple. Wood Orchard will be planting 1,000 trees of the variety that is hailed as a cross between Honeycrisp and Liberty apples. The apples contain two forms of genetic scab resistance, which means orchard owners like Steve Wood will not have to spray it with pesticides. He says it is good news for apple lovers who want to eat something grown locally and organic.

Wood says you will have to wait possibly four years to get your hands on Triumph apples. They cut the buds off apple trees just as they start to blossom to allow them to mature before allowing them to bear fruit. When the trees are ready in the future, Triumph apples will be available in late September. The University of Minnesota has bred close to 30 different apple varieties.

Photo courtesy of University of Minnesota