Kerr Applecrab

Overview

One of our all-time favorites, Kerr is an applecrab (Haralson x Dolgo) bred by W.L. Kerr at the Canada Experimental Farm in 1938 and released in 1952. First introduced to us by Roger Joy in the summer of 2016, this variety immediately stood out. It’s Roger’s favorite, and we totally get why. It. has since become one of our go-to applecrabs.

Flavor & Uses

• Bold, complex flavor with a beautiful red skin and yellow-tinged flesh

• Flavor notes people have reported: "Floral, cinnamon, cherry, grape, almond, pineapple, and even hoppy"

• Best for fresh eating, but also makes:

  • Gorgeous rosé-colored cider

  • Vibrant pink applesauce

  • An amazing addition to oatmeal

• Stores actually fairly well for several months. Loses flavor but as of 2/22/26 (when this was written), we've got lots in the fridge. Again, flavor is not as strong as right off the tree, and they have become a bit mealy, but they aren't bad. However, they did not store nearly as well for us in 2025 because they were picked in the latter part of their two week window to harvest the fruit. If harvested in the earlier part of that window, they will keep significantly longer. A quick rough estimate would be that for every day one waits to harvest the tree in that window, their shelf life drops a week. It would be interesting to compare this phenomenon with other apples across the board because perhaps this holds true generally?

We love it alongside Chestnut and Martha crabapples—together they make an unbeatable trio for flavor and versatility.

Cold Hardiness

• Survived -47°F at Ed Schultz’s orchard in Gallatin Gateway, although it did have a little bit of limb damage at those temps (not to the trunk, though).

• Likely hardy to -45°F without any winter injury, whereas its limit is likely -50°F or maybe a tad colder. Look towards Centennial, Rescue, and Trailman for even hardier applecrabs.