Meet the Appalachian Apple Hunter Who Rescued 1,000 ‘Lost’ Varieties

Photo: At farmers markets and other events, Brown displays a variety of apples to incite pomaceous conversations. Courtesy of Tom Brown. Article by Eric J. Wallace. Atlas Obscura – June 3, 2021.

Tom Brown’s retirement hobby is a godsend for chefs, conservationists, and cider.

As Tom Brown leads a pair of young, aspiring homesteaders through his home apple orchard in Clemmons, North Carolina, he gestures at clusters of maturing trees. A retired chemical engineer, the 79 year old lists varieties and pauses to tell occasional stories. Unfamiliar names such as Black Winesap, Candy Stripe, Royal Lemon, Rabun Bald, Yellow Bellflower, and Night Dropper pair with tales that seem plucked from pomological lore. […]

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