In Search of the Elusive Colorado Orange

Jude and Addie Schuenemeyer

In a broadcast that originally aired on The Food Garden Life Radio Show, we chat with Jude Schuenemeyer from Colorado about the history of apple cultivation in Colorado, his work finding and preserving heritage apple varieties—and the recent “rediscovery” an a variety that he and his wife Addie have been working to track down and identify for 20 years: the Colorado Orange.

Schuenemeyer, a Sherlock Holmes of the apple world, scours historical horticultural records and talks to old timers, as well as using technology such as genetic fingerprinting.

The Colorado Orange

Schuenemeyer weaves together the threads of the story of the Colorado Orange, which include:

• The influx of people to Colorado with the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush in the 1850s

• A growing apples industry that fed these newcomers

• The development of apples that would survive in the harsh conditions

• Historical descriptions of the apple

• Genetic testing

• And, finally, finding a nearly forgotten set of wax apples that permitted the positive identification of the variety

Montezuma Orchard Restoration Project

With their passion for finding, saving, and sharing historical apple varieties, the Schuenemeyers eventually closed their nursery business and founded the Montezuma Orchard Restoration Project, a non-profit organization that works to preserve Colorado’s fruit-growing heritage and restore orchards to the culture and economy of the region.

Emma’s Tomato-Talk Segment

We chat with Sarah Page about preserving tomatoes.

Page is a contributor to the latest version of the Bernardin Complete Book of Home Preserving: 400 Delicious and Creative Recipes for Today.

Page, who works as a recipe developer and tester, is a trained consumer chef and home economist. She loves creating new recipes with local and seasonal harvests.

Biggs-on-Figs Segment

We share questions and Answers from Steven’s Latest book, Growing Figs in Cold Climates: 150 of Your Questions Answered.