Michigan statewide apple maturity report – October 1, 2025
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EmailKeep abreast of the latest apple maturity testing done in different cultivars around the state to optimize harvest times for storage and fresh picking.
This report provides data to compare apple maturity across Michigan. This will include information from multiple regions, but if available you should consult a maturity report from your specific region. Regional reports will include more information, including updates on harvest extenders and pest and disease management.
Predicted harvest dates
Table 1. 2025 predicted peak harvest dates.
| Full bloom date 2025 | Predicted harvest date 2025 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | McIntosh | Jons | Reds | McIntosh | Jons | Reds | Observer |
| SWMREC | 29-Apr | 30-Apr | 1-May | 2-Sep | 19-Sep | 24-Sep | MSU Enviroweather |
| Deerfield | 26-Apr | 28-Apr | 28-Apr | 29-Aug | 18-Sep | 24-Sep | MSU Enviroweather |
| Romeo | 4-May | 5-May | 6-May | 9-Sep | 22-Sep | 29-Sep | MSU Enviroweather |
| Sparta | 5-May | 6-May | 7-May | 10-Sep | 23-Sep | 30-Sep | MSU Enviroweather |
| Hart | 13-May | 14-May | 14-May | 17-Sep | 3-Oct | 9-Oct | MSU Enviroweather |
| NWMHRS | 16-May | 18-May | 20-May | 19-Sep | 9-Oct | 14-Oct | MSU Enviroweather |
Table 2. 2025 predicted peak harvest dates compared to normal and last year.
| Days -/+ normal | Days -/+ last year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Station | McIntosh | Jons | Reds | McIntosh | Jons | Reds |
| SWMREC | -8 | -3 | -4 | 7 | 9 | 7 |
| Deerfield | -12 | -3 | -14 | 5 | 8 | 8 |
| Romeo | -4 | -3 | -4 | 9 | 4 | 5 |
| Sparta | -6 | -3 | -7 | 9 | 7 | 7 |
| Hart | 1 | 0 | -1 | 11 | 10 | 10 |
| NWMHRS | -3 | 3 | -3 | 8 | 13 | 12 |
- Grand Rapids, Michigan
- West central, Michigan
- Northwest Michigan
- Southwest Michigan does not have a report this week.
- Southeast Michigan does not have an independent apple maturity report.
Check out Michigan State University Enviroweather's Growing Degree Days (GDD) Michigan map. Find your closest weather station, create an account on the website, and track GDDs daily.
Maturity tables and summaries
Apple maturity sampling parameters
- Color % = the visual percentage of red color from 0 to 100; range is of all fruits tested
- Firmness in pounds pressure = measured with a Güss Fruit Texture Analyzer; range is of all fruits tested.
- Starch: 1 = all starch, 8 = No starch; range is of all fruits tested. Using Cornell Starch Iodine Index Chart. See the updated MSU starch chart.
- Brix = % sugar measured with Atago PAL-1 Pocket Refractometer
Suggested firmness and starch index for long-term and shorter-term controlled atmosphere (CA) storage by variety:
| Variety | Firmness (lbs)* | Starch Index* | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short CA | Mid-CA | Long CA | Mature | Over-mature | |
| McIntosh | 14 | 15 | 16 | 5 | 7 |
| Gala | 16 | 17 | 18 | 3 | 6 |
| Honeycrisp | 15 | 16 | 17 | 3.5 | 7 |
| Empire | 14 | 15 | 16 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Early Fuji | 16 | 17 | 18 | 3 | 7 |
| Jonagold | 15 | 16 | 17 | 3.5 | 5.5 |
| Jonathan | 14 | 15 | 16 | 3.5 | 5.5 |
| Golden Delicious | 15 | 16 | 17 | 3 | 6.5 |
| Red Delicious | 16 | 17 | 18 | 2.5 | 6 |
| Idared | 14 | 15 | 16 | 3.5 | 6 |
| Fuji | 16 | 17 | 18 | 3 | 7 |
| Rome | 15 | 16 | 18 | 3 | 5.5 |
| Braeburn | 16 | 17 | 18 | 2.5 | 7 |
Southwest Michigan
Southwest Michigan does not have a report this week. The Michigan apple crop forecast for 2025 is above average at 30 million bushels, as given in the USApple Crop Outlook on Aug. 15. See our predicted harvest dates for southwest Michigan.
Southeast Michigan
Growers in the region are picking Red Delicious, Golden Delicious and Jonagolds, with Ida Red, Northen Spy and Mutsu starting in the next week or so. See our predicted harvest dates for southeast Michigan.
Northwest Michigan
Growers are actively harvesting Gala and Honeycrisp. Gala was trailing Honeycrisp in maturity, but with the recent and continued warm weather, Gala has caught up. Both varieties are mature now, and growers are concentrating on moving through blocks as fast as their labor can handle. Growers are jumping around between Gala, Honeycrisp and even some processing apple varieties, depending on the requests from processors and packers.
Maturity dates are tracking more closely to last year with varieties being harvested about two weeks ahead of normal. High heat in August and September seems to have significantly advanced growing degree days and maturity later in the season. See our predicted harvest dates for northwest Michigan.
Apple maturity in northwest Michigan for apples collected on Sept. 30, 2025:
| Variety | Color % | Firmness lbs. | Starch | °Brix |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gala | 85 | 19.8 | 4.9 | 11.3 |
West central Michigan
Jonagold and Empire harvest is wrapping up. Harvest has begun for Ambrosia, and harvest of Golden Delicious will be coming shortly. Rome, Mutsu, Ida Red and Red Delicious are close to maturity. Only one sample of Aztec Fuji was sampled this week, but it was mature according to the starch chart. While it is early for this variety to be mature, check individual blocks to determine if harvest is needed. Pink Lady and EverCrisp were also sampled for initial testing. These varieties showed early signs of maturity, and they will continue to be monitored over the next few weeks.
Maturity dates are tracking more closely to last year with varieties being harvested about two weeks ahead of normal. High heat in August and September seems to have significantly advanced growing degree days and maturity later in the season. Be sure to monitor your blocks to harvest at the optimal maturity stage for each variety and target storage conditions. Communicate this information to packers and processors to facilitate proper storage and optimize fruit quality.
See our predicted harvest dates for west central Michigan.
| Variety | Collection Date | Weight (g) | Red Color % | Background | Diameter (in) | Firmness (lb) | Starch | °Brix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ambrosia | 9/29/2025 | 185 | 71 | 1.8 | 2.9 | 17.3 | 5.1 | 14.3 |
| Aztec Fuji | 9/29/2025 | 186 | 65 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 16.0 | 3.8 | 11.4 |
| Evercrisp | 9/29/2025 | 194 | 71 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 20.0 | 2.2 | 13.1 |
| Golden Delicious | 9/29/2025 | 166 | 22 | 2.7 | 2.9 | 17.0 | 5.4 | 15.2 |
| Ida Red | 9/29/2025 | 198 | 73 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 16.4 | 2.1 | 12.1 |
| Mutsu | 9/29/2025 | 314 | 10 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 19.8 | 1.8 | 12.3 |
| Northern Spy | 9/29/2025 | 219 | 73 | 2.5 | 3.2 | 20.6 | 3.5 | 12.5 |
| Pink Lady | 9/29/2025 | 145 | 65 | 2.9 | 2.7 | 18.5 | 3.3 | 12.5 |
| Red Delicious | 9/29/2025 | 168 | 91 | 2.1 | 2.8 | 17.0 | 2.4 | 13.7 |
| Rome | 9/29/2025 | 195 | 97 | 1.9 | 3.0 | 23.0 | 2.7 | 12.3 |
Grand Rapids region
Jonagold and Empire are being harvested. Golden Delicious and Ambrosia are mature, according to the starch rating, and are still very firm. Red Delicious, Fuji and Ida Red are still immature.
Maturity dates are tracking more closely to last year with varieties being harvested about two weeks ahead of normal. High heat in August and September seems to have significantly advanced growing degree days and maturity later in the season. Be sure to monitor your blocks to harvest at the optimal maturity stage for each variety and target storage conditions. Communicate this information to packers and processors to facilitate proper storage and optimize fruit quality. See our predicted harvest dates for Grand Rapids.
| Variety | Collection Date | Weight (g) | Red Color % | Background | Diameter (in) | Firmness (lb) | Starch | °Brix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ambrosia | 9/29/2025 | 162 | 61 | 2.8 | 2.8 | 17.7 | 6.4 | 14.9 |
| Aztec Fuji (retain) | 9/29/2025 | 148 | 73 | 4.1 | 2.7 | 19.3 | 2.7 | 12.7 |
| Cameo | 9/29/2025 | 208 | 94 | 3.8 | 3 | 16.8 | 3 | 12.3 |
| Empire | 9/29/2025 | 145 | 91 | 3.4 | 2.8 | 17.7 | 3.9 | 12.5 |
| Golden Delicious | 9/29/2025 | 141 | 25 | 4.1 | 2.6 | 17.4 | 7 | 14.8 |
| Ida Red | 9/29/2025 | 181 | 75 | 4.2 | 3 | 15.9 | 2.2 | 12.3 |
| Red Delicious | 9/29/2025 | 149 | 92 | 3.4 | 2.7 | 17.8 | 2.6 | 12.6 |
| Rome | 9/29/2025 | 178 | 99 | 4 | 2.9 | 22.1 | 2.9 | 13.8 |
Upcoming events
Great Lakes Expo
The Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable, and Farm Markets Expo, held annually in early December at the DeVos Place Convention Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is the largest show of its kind in the country. It attracts a diverse audience of apple growers from the Great Lakes region.
This year's apple sections take place on Tuesday, Dec. 9 and Wednesday, Dec. 10.
Sweet and hard cider: Tuesday morning
|
Paula Englin |
MCA Block Grant Report |
|
Mike and Mark Vansteenkiste |
Making award winning sweet and hard cider at Twin Pines Orchard and Cider House in Ontario |
|
Kevin Halfmann |
Regulations on producing unpasteurized cider in Michigan |
|
Wade Syers |
Cider preservation |
Apple 1: Tuesday afternoon
|
Todd Einhorn |
Apple vulnerability to winter freeze and spring frost events |
|
Jackie Perkins |
Climate Change Adaptations for Pest Management |
|
Randy Beaudry |
Evercrisp, but not ever lasting: Are there strategies to help us preserve Evercrisp quality in Controlled Atmosphere |
|
Renfu Lu |
Robotic Apple Harvesting: Is it a Fiction or the Future |
Apple 2: Wednesday afternoon
|
Julianna Wilson |
Trends and Management Updates on Key Apple Pests |
|
George Sundin |
Fire blight and bitter rot updates |
|
Tom Kon |
Lateral branch induction strategies for apple |
|
Poli Francescatto |
Best Practices and Research Updates for ReTain Use |
Apple thinning: Thursday morning
|
Todd Einhorn |
Michigan State University |
|
Tom Kon |
NC State University |
|
Poli Francescatto |
Valent Biosciences |
|
John Cline |
University of Guelph |
|
Randy Beaudry |
Michigan State University |
Cider contest: Wednesday afternoon
The cider contest will judge the best ciders produced by Michigan cider makers (only Michigan cider producers are eligible). Here are some important details for the contest:
To enter, cider producers must submit two 1-gallon cider jugs at the Exhibitor Registration desk in the Grand Gallery concourse in DeVos Place on Tuesday, Dec. 9, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., or on Wednesday, Dec. 10, from 8 a.m. to noon. No entries will be accepted after noon on Wednesday.
Cider samples must be thawed by 1 p.m. on Wednesday (this is the responsibility of each cider producer, not the contest coordinator).
Cider contest judging will be on Wednesday afternoon. Judging will be held in one of the main-level Grand Gallery meeting rooms and will be open for viewing starting at 1:30 p.m.
The top five winners will be notified prior to the EXPO Social so they can be in attendance. Winners will be announced at the EXPO Social on Wednesday evening. First place receives a plaque and a traveling trophy. Second and third places receive a plaque.
Don't miss this valuable opportunity to connect with industry experts, gain valuable knowledge and explore the latest advancements in the apple industry.
We look forward to seeing you there!
To get a better sense of the Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable, and Farm Market Expo, check out this video.
Related articles
- The 2025 Michigan apple crop forecast, as given at the USApple Outlook meeting
- Predicted apple harvest dates for 2025 from MSU Extension.
- More information on harvest management tools and timings from MSU Extension.
- Post harvest treatments to extend apple life.
- Guidelines from MSU Extension to check for apple maturity in your own orchard, including specific pressure and starch recommendations by variety.
- Predicting apple maturity and starch chart from Cornell University.