It's hard to believe, but summer is on its way out the door and cozy season is quickly approaching -- which means it's almost time for sweater weather, football, pumpkin spice and apple picking.
Luckily, Honeycrisp apple season is nearly here!
Widely grown around the world, millions of Honeycrisp apples have been sold to people who love the unique sweet-tart taste and texture, described as explosively crisp and juicy.
"Bite into the cream-colored flesh and the large cells explode with juice in your mouth, carrying a delightful, well-balanced, sub-acid and mildly aromatic flavor," according to the University of Minnesota, which developed the Honeycrisp through a crossbreeding program and introduced it to the market in the 1990s.
The cream of the crop in the minds of many, Honeycrisp apples not only have an amazing storage life -- they can last up to seven months -- but they're extremely versatile and can be eaten fresh or used in baking and cooking.
Because of their broad appeal and increasing demand, Honeycrisp apples often fetch a premium price -- currently averaging around $1.59 per pound, Axios reported.
Honeycrisp is the third most-produced apple in the country, behind Red Delicious and Gala, increasing by 46% or almost 9 million 42-pound bushels compared to 2018/19 production volumes, according to the U.S. Apple Association.
Honeycrisp is a great mid-season apple and typically harvested in the late summer to early fall. In most regions, the harvest season usually ranges from September 15 to October 5, according to the University of Minnesota.
"The apples ripen evenly and hold well on the tree. Since they can be harvested over an extended period, orchards or consumers who like to pick their own can pick in mid- to late September and return again for another harvest," the school said.
While most are picked between the second and third week of September, growers in some regions have already started to harvest Honeycrisp apples earlier than originally anticipated. That means you can start looking for fresh-picked Honeycrisp in stores and farm markets soon.
And there will be plenty of apples to go around. The U.S. apple crop for 2023/24 is expected to top 250 million bushels -- a 1.5% increase compared to last year, according to the U.S. Apple Association. Gala is expected to retain the top spot with more than 45 million bushels (m bu) produced, followed by Red Delicious (31 m bu), Honeycrisp (28 m bu), Other Varieties (25 m bu) and Fuji (25 m bu). Granny Smith just missed number five with 24.6 million bushels.