Harmon

(a.k.a. Davis Purple)

When you first come upon a Harmon apple, you might think that you had discovered a Black Oxford. They are both roundish-oblate, medium-sized, and a deep purple-black sprinkled with white dots. But one bite will tell you that Harmon is a very different apple. It is ready to eat in mid-fall when Black Oxford is hard as a rock and rather tasteless. The flesh is white and easy to bite; the flavor sweet and mild. Harmon is an apple to enjoy fresh; it is not a cooking apple. And unlike it’s doppleganger, it does not keep beyond mid-winter.

We were first introduced to the apple by a fellow named Don Essman who located the ancient tree in Standish, not far from Buxton. Not knowing it's identity, Don called it "Davis Purple." That tree died in 1999, but by then we had the apple safely grafted on our farm in Palermo.  In about 2015, with the assistance of a number of folks from the Buxton-Hollis Historical Society, we determined that Davis Purple was actually Harmon.  Harmon originated on the farm on J.H. Harmon in Buxton, Maine about 1887.  Buxton, itself, was first settled in 1728 as "Narragansett Number 1,"  and was incorporated as Buxton in 1772. By the late 1800's there were many Harmons in town, including John and Jacob.  One of the two was most likely the J.H. responsible for the apple.  J.H. also introduced another apple, Narragansett (undoubtedly from the town's original name and not to be confused with the Narragansett Crabapple.)