Hidden Rose® apple trees

(Airlie Red Flesh)

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• Picking season: Very late
• Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
• Flowering group: 2

Hidden Rose is a plain green-skinned apple, but when you bite into it you find the unusual rose pink flesh inside.

As with many red or pink-fleshed apples the blossom is a deeper pink than is found in regular white-fleshed apples. This puts Hidden Rose in the middle of the spectrum which runs from regular mainstream apples with white or light pink blossom, green leaves, and white or cream flesh, to the dark-fleshed crab apples which usually have very dark pink blossom and bronze leaves. 

Hidden Rose apples ripen quite late in the season. They have a pleasant tangy flavour, and overall this is one of the better-tasting red or pink-fleshed varieties. The apples can be kept in cold storage for several months.

Hidden Rose organic apple trees for sale

Next deliveries: December 2025

• 11 yeartree on M9 rootstock28.00€
  Small tree (1.5m-2.5m after 10 years) Bare-root
  

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• 21 yeartree on M116 rootstock29.25€
  Medium tree (2m-3.5m after 10 years) Bare-root
  

  Sold-out
• 31 yeartree on MM111 rootstock28.00€
  Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years) Bare-root
  

  Sold-out
• 4Half-standard (2 years)tree on MM111 rootstock41.50€
  Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years) Bare-root
  

  Collection only - contact us

EU delivery countries

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Click here to view estimated delivery charges. We can deliver to most countries in the EU. However our 2-year trees and some pot-grown trees are too big or unsuitable for mail-order and are only available for collection direct from the nursery. Please contact us if you wish to order.

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Let me know when Hidden Rose apple trees are back in stock.

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If you do not hear from us by March you can contact us to pre-order for next autumn.

History

Hidden Rose was named in 2001, but was discovered in the 1960s growing as a seedling tree near Airlie in Oregon, USA. It is still widely known by its original name - Airlie Red Flesh.

Hidden Rose characteristics

• Attractive featuresAttractive flowersAttractive fruit
• Gardening skillAverage
• Self-fertilityNot self-fertile
• Flowering group2
• Disease resistancePoor
• Picking periodlate Octoberearly November
• Picking seasonVery late
• Season of use1-2 months
• Food usesCulinaryJuice
• Summer average maximum temperaturesCool ( 20-24C / 68-75F)
• Country of originUnited States
• Period of origin1950 - 1999
• Flower colourPink
• Flesh colourPink / Red
• Fruit colourGreen - light

Similar varieties

• 
  Early Red Meat
  Early Red Meat is an early season apple with a marbled red / pink flesh. It produces a dark pink apple juice.
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  Pink Pearl
  Pink Pearl features bright pink flesh, and pink apple blossom.
• 
  Red Devil
  Red Devil is a versatile English eating apple, and produces a sweet red-tinted juice.
• 
  Roberts Crab
  Roberts Red or Roberts Crab is an unusual red-fleshed crab-apple, with dark pink blossom, and purple fruits.

More about apple trees

While the vast majority of apples have white or cream-coloured flesh, some varieties have red flesh. Those with the most intense red flesh are usually descended from a red-fleshed crab-apple called Malus niedzetzkyana found in central Asia. The red colouration in this species also extends to the blossom, leaves and young shoots. 

Other varieties feature pink flesh or pink / marbled flesh, and these are often more palatable. 

The juice of red-fleshed apples is usually light or dark pink, and makes an attractive alternative to regular apple juice.

These varieties are of interest because of their ornamental qualities, and also because the anthocyanin compounds which give the flesh its colour are thought to have anti-oxidant properties.