If you are new to growing apple trees, Red Windsor is one of the easiest and most reliable of all apple varieties. It is self-fertile, so there is no need to worry about pollination partners. It grows naturally in a neat and tidy fashion, and crops heavily. The apples can be picked over several weeks so you don't have to deal with a glut. It seems untroubled by the usual diseases of apples, and the blossom also has some resistance to frost. Finally, and perhaps most important of all, it has a good robust apple flavor with some aromatic qualities.
Red Windsor is a red sport (natural mutation) of a German variety called Alkmene, derived from Cox's Orange Pippin - hence the good flavor. It has a noticeably redder and less Cox-like appearance than Alkmene, although the characteristic Cox flushed striping can usually be discerned.
Red Windsor is grown commercially on a small-scale in the UK, and sometimes marketed as Sweet Lilibet.
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Red Windsor is a great mid-season apple variety for the UK garden. It is easy to grow and crops heavily. As mentioned above, it is self-fertile, a rare feature in apple varieties.
Red Windsor is reasonably disease-resistant and the blossom also has some resistance to late frosts. The tree grows in a compact style, so it is a good choice if you are short of space.
Being a mid-season variety, Red Windsor is also a good choice for difficult situations where light is limited, or where the summer growing season is short.
Developed in Herefordshire in the 1980s as a red sport of Alkmene. Its parentage is Cox's Orange Pippin and Duchess of Oldenburg.
