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History and lore
The Ancient Greeks and Romans believed apples to be aphrodisiacs, and for the Celts crab apples were a symbol of fertility. In the Middle Ages, the cult of the apple continued in such customs as apple-bobbing at Hallowe'en and wassailing at Christmas. |
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 Apples have been eaten since prehistoric times, when only wild crab apples existed. The Romans adored apples and were the first people to cultivate the fruit; by the first century AD they were growing at least a dozen varieties throughout the Roman Empire.
The most famous of all apple-growers was the nineteenth century English nurseryman, Thomas Laxton. With his sons, he hybridized hundreds of varieties of apples, many of which still exist today and bear his name. |
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 The Pilgrim Fathers introduced apples to the New World, planting pips that they had taken with them from England. They proved so popular that in the eighteenth century John Chapman (popularly known as "Johnny Appleseed") planted apple orchards across about 10,000 square miles of North America, using discarded apple pips from cider-making plants. |
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| A century later, apple-growing in Australia took off when Mrs Maria Smith cultivated the first Granny Smith in her garden in Sydney. |
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