Apple

green apples]]

The apple tree comes from southern Kazakhstan; Kyrgyzstan; Uzbekistan; Turkey; and northwestern part of China. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Asia and in Europe continent. They were brought to North America by European World Colonial settlers. Apples have Religious and mythological significance in many cultures.:.

Apples are generally grown by grafting, although wild apples grow readily from seed. Apple trees are normally large if grown from seed, but small if grafted onto roots (rootstock). There are more than 10,000 known variants of apples, with a range of desired characteristics. Different variants are bred for various tastes and uses: cooking, eating raw and cider production are the most common uses. In addition to that, when it comes to food toxicity, the seeds in apples can be fatal, but only if they've been crushed. Apples contain amygdalin, which can release cyanide when digested. Apple seeds contain a chemical that can make cyanide, but the amount is too small to harm people who eat a few seeds.  

Trees and fruit are attacked by fungi, bacteria and pests. In 2010, the fruit's genome was sequenced as part of research on disease control and selective breeding in apple production. 

Worldwide production of apples in 2013 was 90.8 million tonnes. China grew 49% of the total.

## Botanical information 
The apple tree is a small, leaf-shedding tree that grows up to  tall. The apple tree has a broad crown with thick twigs. The leaves are alternately arranged simple ovals. They are 5 to 12 centimetres long and  wide. It has a sharp top with a soft underside. Blossoms come out in spring at the same time that the leaves begin to bud. The flowers are white. They also have a slightly pink color. They have five petals, and  in diameter. The fruit matures in autumn. It is usually  in diameter. There are five carpels arranged in a star in the middle of the fruit. Every carpel has one to three seeds.
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### Wild ancestors 
The wild ancestor of apple trees is *Malus sieversii*. They grow wild in the mountains of Central Asia in the north of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Xinjiang, China, They are being used recently to develop *Malus domestica* to grow in colder . Apples were brought to North America. The first apple orchard on the North American continent was said to be near Boston in 1625. In the 1900s, costly fruit industries, where the apple was a very important species, began developing. Different variants are available for temperate and subtropical climates. One large collection of over 2,100 apple variants is at the National Fruit Collection in England. Most of these variants are grown for eating fresh (dessert apples). However, some are grown simply for cooking or making cider. Cider apples are usually too  to eat immediately. However, they give cider a rich flavor that dessert apples cannot.

Most popular apple cultivars are soft but . Colorful skin, easy shipping, disease resistance, 'Red Delicious' apple shape, and popular flavor are also needed. Modern apples are usually sweeter than older cultivars. This is because popular tastes in apples have become different. Most North Americans and Europeans enjoy sweet apples. and India.

### In the United Kingdom 
In the United Kingdom there are about 3000 different types of apples. The most common apple type grown in England is the 'Bramley seedling', which is a popular cooking apple.

Apple orchards are not as common as they were in the early 1900s, when apples were rarely brought in from other countries. Organizations such as Common Ground teach people about the importance of rare and local varieties of fruit.

### In North America 
Many apples are grown in temperate parts of the United States and Canada. "Washington State currently produces over half the Nation's domestically grown apples and has been the leading apple-growing State since the early 1920s."  New York and Michigan are the next two leading states in apple production. "The total reported area dedicated to the crop in the United States is 336,940 acres or 526.47 square miles." 

In many areas where apple growing is important, people have huge celebrations:
* Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival - held five days every spring (May-June) in Nova Scotia
* Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival - held six days every spring in Winchester, Virginia.
* Washington State Apple Blossom Festival - held two weeks every spring (April-May) in Wenatchee, Washington.

## Varieties of apples 
There are many different varieties of apples, including

* Aport
* Cox's Orange Pippin
* Fuji (apple)
* Gala
* Golden Delicious (sometimes called a Green Delicious Apple)
* Granny Smith
* Honeycrisp
* Jonathan
* Jonagold
* McIntosh
* Pink Lady
* Red Delicious
* Winesap
* Honey crisp

## Family 
Apples are in the group Maloideae. This is a subfamily of the family *Rosaceae*. They are in the same subfamily as pears.

## References
## Further reading 
* Potter D. *et al* 2007. Phylogeny and classification of Rosaceae. *Plant Systematics and Evolution*. **266** (1–2): 5–43.

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