Aagtenappel: SA’s ancient apple tree

By Elise-Marie Steenkamp

Normally I spend Sunday mornings in bed with coffee and rusks reading the Sunday newspapers on my tablet. Like civilised people do. But today that was not to be. I was out on a quest, bamboozled really, to trek out in search of finding the oldest apple tree in South Africa.

You might be forgiven if you thought that this was nothing to complain about. However, the venture had a little catch. The tree was on top of Table Mountain.

And so a group of apple adventurers gathered at the start of the Constantia Nek track. Our destination: the Mountain Club (MC) hut near the Woodhead dam. There, according to legend, the resident engineer responsible for building the original reservoir systems well over a hundred years ago, planted an apple tree.

The MC guide informed us that it was a mere two to three hours of moderate hiking up the mountain. And so we set off.  The steep, winding road teased and twisted. The views and vegetation were spectacular, the mountain’s flank covered in endangered Peninsula Granite Fynbos. Super-fit mountain runners (eye roll) whizz past, already heading back home. Under the unforgiving sun, the water bottles were soon emptied.  Feeling like a child, I nagged the guide, ‘How far yet’? My wobbly calves and mood improved the minute we reached level ground. The Sandstone Fynbos is splendid and diverse, False Bay, Robben Island and the Atlantic a sight to behold.

Around 12 we reached the hut. According to our guide the MC hut was originally built for the resident engineer overseeing construction of the Woodhead and Hely-Hutchinson Reservoirs on the lower table. In 1904 when the dams were completed and the hut due to be demolished, the MC approached the Cape Town City Council and negotiated a lease agreement. The nominal rental of one Pound per annum was later dropped because it wasn’t cost-effective for the council to continue collecting it.

“We want to preserve the genetic heritage of South African apples and pears that are no longer in commercial production and at risk of being forgotten. In our search for ancient apples and pears, we discovered this apple tree on top of Table Mountain,”

And there in front of the hut stood the tree for which I had sacrificed my Sunday morning in bed. Moss-covered and rather sad-looking. Broken and twisted by the wind – the ancient one.

The tree was not very big at all and had I not known any better, I would probably not even have noticed it. The tree was accidentally discovered after a three-year search by Buks Nel and Henk Griessel from Tru-Cape. These two were also the force behind the planting of the Heritage Orchard, now in its fourth leaf, at Oak Valley Estate in Grabouw.

What makes the discovery of this tree so important? I asked Griessel. Unlike pear trees, known to reach over 300 years, apple trees are normally removed when they stop bearing fruit – around 40 years. However, they could live up to about a hundred years. This specific tree, furthermore, is thought to be one of the original varieties planted by Jan van Riebeeck. “We want to preserve the genetic heritage of South African apples and pears that are no longer in commercial production and at risk of being forgotten. In our search for ancient apples and pears, we discovered this apple tree on top of Table Mountain,” Griessel says.

Although the tree is definitely very old one would need to conduct tests to say exactly how old it is. The tree has definitely weathered harsh conditions as it is almost growing horizontally as a result of the strong winds. Although the tree has not been identified as yet, Griessel says that history provides clues.

“In 1723, Francois Valentijn reported seeing three apple trees in the Company’s Garden. One of them he named the Aagtenappel of which he says: ‘De aagtenappel zyn hier doorgans wel klein, doch zeer goed van smaak’. We found the Aagtenappel in the book of Knoop of 1758 which is also known as the Kroonappel. When we compare historic illustrations of the Aagtenappel we see many similarities to the fruit from the tree on top of Table Mountain.” In addition to the old tree in the front garden of the MC hut, a second, younger apple tree, believed to be a seedling, was found in the area, at an altitude of 760m close to the Waterworks Museum.
So was it worth the pain and effort? Sitting near the tree I couldn’t stop wondering what incredible stories the tree could tell, human dramas, extreme weather events and all the interesting people that plucked an apple from its branches? Next time you feel like hiking, strap on your boots and visit the ancient one in front of the MC hut. You won’t regret it.