Hewe's Crab Apple
Malus cv ‘Hewe's Crab’
This cider apple, also known as Hughes' Crab, was the most popular cider apple variety grown in eighteenth-century Virginia. It is thought to be a cross between the native American crabapple, Malus angustifolia, and the domesticated European apple of horticulture. It produced a delicious cinnamon-flavored cider that was both sugary and pungent. Jefferson designated his entire north orchard exclusively for this variety and once wrote that crushing the juicy Hewe's Crab for cider was like "squeezing a wet sponge."
Recent genetic analysis and a review of the historical record has revealed that the Hewe's Crab apple may no longer be extant and the Virginia Crab variety once thought synonymous with Hewe's is a separate cultivar altogether.
Visit Monticello’s Online Shop to check for seeds or plants of Virginia Crab Apple.
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