Apples, pears and other pome fruit

Pome fruits are members of the plant family Rosaceae, sub-family pomoideae. They are fruits that have a "core" of several small seeds, surrounded by a tough membrane. The membrane is encased in an edible layer of flesh. Trees are deciduous and have a dormant winter period that requires cold temperatures for the tree to properly break dormancy in spring.

Apples, pears, nashi and quince are pome fruits, grown from spring blossom and harvested from late summer through to late autumn.

Apples are a major crop in NSW, with most grown in Batlow and Orange.  Smaller amounts of apples are grown in the Sydney basin, Forbes and the Northern Tablelands. Pears and nashi are a minor commercial crop in NSW, grown in similar areas to apples.