AM Minnesota Talking Apples

The topic on today's AM Minnesota Program will be apples! My guest will be David Bedford who is an Apple Breeder at the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. I was talking with David and he said he just completed his 40th year at the University of Minnesota. The apple breeding program at the University of Minnesota was started 111 years ago. In that time about 27 different apple varieties have been released.

There are only three apple breeding programs in the United States. There is a program in Washington State, Cornell University in New York and then at the University of Minnesota. The program at the University of Minnesota was started out of necessity. When the settlers were moving from the East Coast to Minnesota they brought along apples. They were dismayed to find out their apple varieties did not survive Minnesota's harsh winters.

So, they asked the University of Minnesota to develop apple varieties that were more winter hardy. Many people do not know that the University of Minnesota was founded as a Land Grant University even before Minnesota was a state!