2026 Pennsylvania Tree Fruit Maturity Report - September 28

Introduction

Welcome to Penn State Extension's weekly apple maturity reports. Maturity metrics for key varieties will be tracked across the state throughout the 2026 season.

In this stressful year, with crops decimated by multiple springtime freeze events and hot, dry early summer weather, informed harvest timing recommendations are critical for fruit quality, particularly for apples in mid- to long-term storage. Balancing harvest decisions against sugar accumulation, color development, starch clearing, and firmness drop is difficult to perform in a normal year. These reports serve to provide insight and help inform management decisions.

Out of respect for our collaborators' need to squeeze out as much profit as possible from their available fruit, sampling of varieties may occur a week or more later than in previous years in order to reduce Penn State Extension's impact on their harvest. Please bear this in mind as recommendations this year may require quick action.

[Editor's note: The wrong template was used to create the Introduction section and has been corrected. Some clarifying text was added in the section on seedlessness in Braeburn. Extension regrets these errors.]

Observations

Seedlessness (Take 3)

Readers from last week will recall an observation made about Braeburn (Kumeu Crimson®) in Adams County: seedlessness across all samples.  Once again, every Braeburn tested failed to yield a single seed (Figure 1).  The score at the bottom of the second (round of sampling) stands at: seedless: 22, seeded: 0.

This suggests that this condition is a widespread issue this year for this particular variety and strain.  (Or to qualify it further as an academic: at least in this particular block, and perhaps just in the area near one end of the rows where they were harvested).  Spot checking throughout the block may be conducted later this week—time permitting, with owner permission, and the block remaining unharvested.

A closer inspection of undifferentiated callus in the carpels can be seen in Figure 2.  The exception is the fourth image on the right, where the carpels have turned black and what appears to be fungal mycelia have taken hold.  While this has not been verified in a laboratory, it is quite possible that this is the onset of an Alternaria infection leading to dry core rot.  Breaking open another sample not included with those used for this report reveals what appears to be a clear path to infection with a somewhat open "sinus" as seen in Golden Delicious or Idared (Figure 3).

Adams County

Discussion

Fall has arrived in the orchard. Last week brought a lot of rain (~1.5 inches) and a clear shift to cooler conditions, with daytime highs mostly in the 60s and nighttime temperatures frequently dropping into the 40s and 50s. Temperatures have moderated slightly over the past few days, and somewhat warmer conditions are expected later this week. Despite this, overall temperatures should remain typical of early fall. Some rainfall is also expected this week, especially later in the week towards the weekend.

Varietal Analysis

Braeburn (Kumeu Crimson®) (Figure 4) is holding steady in firmness at 22.8 lb, the highest of the group. Red color remained at 76%, while background color was unchanged at 1.2. Brix also remained steady at approximately 13.5. Starch increased from 3.2 to 4.0, and fruit weight increased from 245 to 262 g. If this variety is destined for long term storage, it should be harvested this week, otherwise, it can wait until next week to be harvested.

Evercrisp® (Figure 4) is continuing to move in the right direction. Red color increased from 40% to 53%, starch increased from 2.9 to 4.1, and Brix rose from 13.2 to 13.6. Background color was essentially unchanged at 1.4, and firmness held at approximately 20 lb. For short-term storage, harvest can wait until next week to allow additional color development, as Evercrisp® stores well. Otherwise, it can be harvested this week.

Fuji (Aztec® / DT2 cv.) (Figure 5) is the most advanced block sampled this week. Starch increased from 4.5 to 5.4, and red color increased from 65% to 80%. Background color edged up from 1.2 to 1.3. Firmness dropped from 16.5 to 15.6 lb, the lowest in the group, while Brix remained unchanged at 12.0. As Fuji continues to advance toward overmaturity, fruit can become more susceptible to cracking, so it should be harvested quickly this week.

Granny Smith (Figure 6) is still relatively early based on starch, which increased from 2.3 to 3.2. Firmness eased from 18.1 to 17.7 lb, while Brix dropped from 11.7 to 11.1. Blush remained minimal at 6%. Background color decreased from 2.9 to 1.9, the largest change in background color among the varieties this week. Fruit weight is the largest of the group at 303 g. Harvest this week if the fruit is destined for long-term storage. For short-term storage, harvest can wait until next week or the following week.

Nittany (Figure 5) continued to mature slowly. Red color improved from 36% to 57%, and Brix increased from 11.2 to 11.7. Starch changed only slightly, from 2.1 to 2.4, while background color remained at 1.5. Firmness slipped from 18.8 to 18.2 lb. Continue monitoring over the next few weeks.

Berks County

Varietal Analysis

Evercrisp® (Figure 7) in Berks County showed slower starch development than the Adams County block, with starch increasing from 1.7 to 2.4. Red color improved from 53.5% to 60.5%. Background color decreased from 2.8 to 1.7, while firmness eased from 21.1 to 19.3 lb. Brix was the highest of any block in this report at 15.4. There was some variation in fruit size and diameter in this week’s samples compared with last week. Continue monitoring over the next few weeks.

Historical Data

The tables below contain the data collected in previous weeks of this year's reporting cycle. It is provided to provide information to growers who may be in regions where these varieties are still developing and to serve as a historical record of the 2026 growing season. Please review the previous weeks' reports for information on harvesting.

Adams County

Berks County

Acknowledgements

Starch index values were determined by referencing the Starch Index Scale published by Dr. Randy Beaudry and the MSU Apple Maturity Program at Michigan State University. The page referenced by the hyperlink provides access to a PDF copy of the document that can be freely download.

Starch indexing for RubyMac® and Smokehouse utilized the Cornell scale found in Predicting Harvest Date Windows for Apples by Blanpied and Silsby (1992).

Because of low crop set throughout our usual sampling regions, we are indebted to the following orchards for sacrificing fruit each week to make these reports possible:

• In Adams County, Penn State wishes to thank Hollabaugh Bros., Inc., in Biglerville, and Hector Mateos in particular for his assistance.
• In Berks County, Penn State wishes to thank Keim Orchard and Frecon Farms in Boyertown, and Ben Keim and Steve Frecon especially for their collaboration.

Their kindness and generosity deserves acknowledgement.

Penn State wishes to thank Rice Fruit Company for material support that help make these reports possible.

Conclusions

Commercial fruit growers, please note: apple maturity conditions need to be monitored at a local level within one's own orchard. Before chemical products are applied, be sure to comply with current federal, state, and local usage regulations and examine the product label. Product information can be easily obtained online from CDMS.

This series of updates is made possible by a State Horticultural Association of Pennsylvania (SHAP) Extension Grant (Pennsylvania Apple Maturity Program). The authors thank SHAP for the funding.