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What's Available?

Last updated: Nov 30,  2024

Now Picking

Check back in 2025!

Pre-Picked (Available in Fruit Stand)

Check back in 2025!

*Please note. Our fruit is available while supplies last! 

Our Varieties

Please note: Season ripening dates are dependent on weather and
may change from year to year. The dates below are an estimate.

June-July

Freestone Peach.webp

Sour Cherries

Description:  Crisp & juicy

Purpose: snacking, jams & jellies, pies

Season begins: June

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Lodi/ Early Transparent

Description:  Tart 

Purpose: Apple sauce & cooking

Season begins: Late June - Early July

Freestone Peaches

Description:  Sweet

Purpose:  Eating & cooking

Season begins:  Early-Mid July

August

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Ginger Gold

Description: Pale yellow, crisp,  sweet-tart

Purpose: Snacking, cooking

Season begins: Early August

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Gala

Description: Juicy, sweet, moderately crisp

Purpose: Snacking, pies, and salads

Season begins: Mid-August

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Grapes

Description: Concord Grapes

Purpose: Table grapes, jelly, snacking

Season begins: Late August - Early September

Asian Pear.jpg

Asian Pear

Description:  Crisp & juicy

Purpose: Snacking, salads, desert

Season begins:  Early August 

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Early Mac

Description: Juicy, semi-firm, lightly tart

Purpose: Snacking, apple sauce, and salads

Season begins: Mid-August

Honeycrisp.webp

Honeycrisp

Description: Juicy, semi-firm, lightly tart

Purpose: Snacking, pies, and salads

Season begins: Mid-August/early September

September

Cortland

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Description: Sweet with a hint of tartness

Purpose: Eating, salads, sauces, pies, baking

Season begins: Mid-Late September

Jonathan

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Description: Semi-firm, sweet-tart

Purpose: Dessert, applesauce, baking, cider

Season begins: Mid Sept - Late Sept/early Oct.

Mutsu/ Crispin

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Description: Firm, crisp, juicy, sweet-tart

Purpose: Baking (holds shape well) 

Season begins: Mid-Sept- Late Sept/early Oct.

Jonagold

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Description: Moderately crisp, sweet-tart

Purpose: Snacking, pies, cider

Season begins: Early September

Macoun

Macoun.jpeg

Description: Crisp, juicy

Purpose: Dessert, cider

Season begins: Late Sept/early Oct.

Ida Red

Idared.webp

Description: Sweet-tart, juicy, firm

Purpose: Sauces, cooking, baking, pies

Season begins: Late Sept/early Oct.

Stayman/ Winesap

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Description: Tart, firm

Purpose: Dessert, pies, apple butter, cider

Season begins: Late Sept/early Oct.

Ambrosia

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Description: Crisp, sweet, mellow

Purpose: Snacking

Season begins: Late Sept/early Oct.

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Golden Delicious

Description: Juicy with a mild, sweet flavor 

Purpose: Snacking, pies, and salads

Season begins: Mid-September

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Fuji

Description: Crisp, juicy, sweet, semi-firm

Purpose: Eating & Baking

Season begins: Mid Sept- Late Sept/early Oct.

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Candy Crisp

Description: Firm, juicy, sweet

Purpose: Snacking, pies, and salads

Season begins: Mid-Sept - Late Sept/early Oct.

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Red Delicious

Description: Sweet, juicy

Purpose: Eating, salads

Season begins: Mid-Sept - Late Sept/early Oct.

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Granny Smith

Description: Hard, crisp, tart

Purpose: Eating & Cooking (excellent keeper)

Season begins: Late Sept/early Oct.

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McIntosh

Description: Crisp, tender, subacid to sweet

Purpose: Dessert, baking, cider

Season begins:  Late Sept/early Oct.

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Cosmic Crisp

Description: Crisp, juicy, sweet-tart

Purpose: Snacking

Season Begins: Late Sept/early Oct.

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Blushing Gold

Description: Juicy, sweet, mild crisp, and semi-firm

Purpose: Snacking, pies, and salads

Season begins: Late Sept/early Oct.

October

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Cameo

Description:  Extra crisp, juicy, slight honey flavor

Purpose: slicing, salads - perfect substitute for Honeycrisp

Season begins: Early October

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Pink Lady

Description: Very crisp, sweet-tart

Purpose: Snacking, pies, and salads

Season begins: Mid-Late October

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Gold Rush

Description: Rich spicy flavor

Purpose: Dessert, pies, cider

Season begins: Mid-Late October

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Evercrisp

Description: Juicy, sweet, mild crisp, and semi-firm

Purpose: Snacking, pies, and salads

Season begins: Early October

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Rome

Description:  Extra crisp, juicy, slight honey flavor

Purpose: Baking, applesauce

Season begins: Mid-Late October

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Arkansas Black

Description: Juicy, sweet, mild crisp, and semi-firm

Purpose: Snacking, pies, and salads

Season begins: Mid-Late Oct.

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Our Varieties

​​*Please note: Variety ripening dates are estimates based on weather and may change from year to year. We do our best to update availability daily during apple season! 

Looking for the best variety to bake a pie, try your hand at pressing cider, or just want to know what's ripe during the time of your visit?
Use our online filter feature (below) to discover that perfect variety!​​

Filter by Current Availability:
Filter by Uses:

SweeTango

Early August

Sweet and crunchy early-ripening apple with a lively touch of citrus, honey, and spice.

Pink Lady®

Mid October

Honey-sweet apple. Great for eating as well as cooking and sauce. Long growing season.

Rome

Early October

"Rome Beauty." Best for cooking as its mild flavor is enriched when cooked. Maintains shape when cooked.

Stayman Winesap

Early October

Firm, tart apple with a thick skin. Good for storage. Great all-purpose apple for eating and baking.

Fuji

Late September

Very flavorful and good for eating fresh as well as a dried apple. Can be stored for up to a year.

Macoun

Mid September

Crisp and juicy. Sweet flavor with a hint of berry. Good for eating, charcuterie boards, or fresh salads; flesh browns slowly.

Mutsu/ Crispin

Mid September

Sweet and firm. Maintains shape and flavor when cooked. Great for baking.

Jonagold

Early September

Crisp, juicy apple that is sweet with a hint of tartness. Cross between a Jonathon and Golden Delicious. Great all around apple, good for baking, snacking and cider.

Asian Pear

Late August

Crunchy, sweet fruits that are great for snacking, salads, cheese plates, or desserts. Asian pears are round in shape and have rough, matte skin with greenish-yellow speckles.

Ginger Gold

Mid August

Sweet, tangy, and juicy. Hold shape well when cooked and are recommended for baking. Brown slowly when cut, making them an excellent choice for salads or cheese plates.

Sour Cherries

Late June

Bright red, juicy, and tart. Best use is for baking, and chutneys or jams.

Freestone Peaches

Mid July

Delicious, juicy peach with a firm texture. Pit removes easily from the flesh, making them easy to enjoy!

Ambrosia

Mid October

Soft crunch similar to Golden Delicious. Great for eating or juicing. Skin is slow to brown so a good apple for salads.

Blushing Gold

Early October

Sweet, honey-like flavored apple. Great for snacking with a perfectly balanced sweet-tart flavor. Firm, dense flesh. Crunchy with medium juice.

Granny Smith

Early October

Tart and crisp. Keeps its shape when cooked, great for pies and cider. High in antioxidants. It has a long storage life.

Cameo

Late September

Sweet with a hint of tart. Flesh is firm and crisp. Great for eating, baking, and applesauce.

Red Delicious

Mid September

Bright red color. Sweet in flavor. Keeps well. Best for snacking and salads. Beautiful apples for display and in holiday decoration.

Jonathan

Mid September

Crisp and juicy apple with tart acidic undertones. Great eating and baking apples. Jonathan apples keep their shape when used in pies, crisps, and other desserts.

Cortland

Early September

Derived from the McIntosh. Juicy and slightly sweet. Browns slowly after cutting, making it great for salads. Great for pies and sauce, breaks down when cooked.

Honeycrisp

Mid August

Very juicy crisp refreshing apple. Best for eating and salads. Stores well and retains flavor well when refrigerated.

Early Mac

Early August

Juicy, moderately firm and tangy (sweet-tart) taste. This variety is good for applesauce and snacking. They do not keep well and are best eaten at harvest.

Gold Rush

Mid October

Sweet-tart. Very flavorful all-purpose apple. Holds up well in storage.

Arkansas Black

Mid October

Excellent apple for cooking and cider. Stores well because of its thick skin that darkens with time.

Cosmic Crisp

Early October

Cross of Enterprise and Honeycrisp. Ideal for snacking, cooking, baking, and entertaining. Large, juicy, and red apple that has a balanced flavor and firm texture

EverCrisp

Early October

Hybrid of Honeycrisp and Fuji. Sweet and crunchy. Stores well. Great for cooking and eating, just like its parent apples!

Ida Red

Mid September

Tart and juicy apple with mild flavor. Good for pies and sauces. Great for storage, can last up to 6 months refrigerated.

Candy Crisp

Mid September

Sweet-tart apple similar to the taste and texture of the Honeycrisp. Introduced in 2005, found by chance growing in a red delicious apple orchard.

Golden Delicious

Early September

Great all-purpose apple; good for eating, baking and popular for apple butter and cider, due to high sugar content. Due to sweet flavor, reduce sugar when used in baking. Excellent keeper.

McIntosh

Early September

Great flavor when cooked! It breaks down easily, making it great for applesauce. Can also be used in pies paired with a tart apple that keeps its shape.

Gala

Mid August

Juicy, crisp apple with a sweet taste. Very popular for snacking, baking and applesauce. Keeps well in storage.

Lodi/ Early Transparent

Early August

"Applesauce Queen." These tart apples are regarded as one of the best apples for applesauce and apple butter, as their soft flesh makes them break down easily when mashed.

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Sky Top Orchard

1193 Pinnacle Mtn Rd

Zirconia, NC 28731

(828) 692-7930

Hours

9-6 DAILY Mid-July through Dec 1
(9-5 after time change)

All attractions are open 7 days/week.

Closed Thanksgiving Day.

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Pet Policy

Furry friends are welcome at Sky Top! For the comfort of other guests, we require them to be on leashes & remain outside of the fruit stand area. 

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