Apple
Can I Grow Liberty?
Liberty is the disease-resistant champion — virtually immune to apple scab and highly resistant to fire blight, cedar apple rust, and powdery mildew. It's the low-spray apple for organic growers.
Growing Requirements
Chill Hours
800
Hardiness Zones
4-5-6-7-8
Harvest
Late September to October
Results
Enter your zip code to see if Liberty will thrive in your area.
You checked if it'll grow. Now make sure you remember what happens when it does.
Pruning dates, harvests, spray schedules, what worked. The gardeners who get the most from their trees are the ones who kept records.
Start your free tree logFree for up to 30 plants. No card needed.
About Liberty
Liberty is the disease-resistant champion — virtually immune to apple scab and highly resistant to fire blight, cedar apple rust, and powdery mildew. It's the low-spray apple for organic growers.
Liberty requires 800 chill hours — the number of hours between 32°F and 45°F during winter dormancy. Without enough chill, the tree may fail to flower properly or produce poor fruit.
⚠️ Common Challenges
Flavor is good but not exceptional compared to Honeycrisp or Fuji; smaller fruit size.
❌ Common Misconception
Can I grow Liberty in Zone 9 or warmer?
No. While Liberty is listed for zones 4-8, it requires 800 chill hours to produce fruit. Warm zones like 9+ typically receive only 200-400 chill hours. The tree may survive but will not fruit reliably. Consider low-chill alternatives like Anna apple (200h) or Tropic Snow peach (200h) instead.
If you plant it, write it down.
Variety, rootstock, planting date — and every pruning and harvest after that. Future you will thank you.
Free for up to 30 plants. No card needed.
Other Apple Varieties
Chill hour data from Open-Meteo Historical Weather API. Variety information compiled from university extension services.