English growers are celebrating a bumper apple crop because of the combination of the warm spring and the summer downpours.

The fruit had been growing so fast before July that growers feared they were going to be landed with apples so large they would be left on the shelves. But the cloudy, cool, wet weather that hit the country in July and last month slowed the spread of growth. The crop is up 10 per cent on last year. The number of pears is also up about 5 per cent and it is one of the best seasons ever for Conference pears.

The production of English Braeburn apples, mainly grown in Kent, was hit by hail during July and the crop is down 12 per cent on expectations. Nevertheless, a record 8,000 tonnes of Braeburns are among the English varieties of fruit arriving in supermarkets this week, seven days earlier than last year. Growers are also aiming to boost Braeburn production in England and hope to grow 20,000 tonnes within five years. English Cox’s apples are the biggest variety, with 45,000 tonnes due to go on sale.

Adrian Barlow, chief executive of English Apples and Pears Ltd, said: “We are ecstatic, it has been an amazing year. Yet before July we were convinced our apples would be too big and no one would buy them. They were growing like fury and we thought they would be over 80mm in diameter, which is the highest end of supermarket specifications. We had a similar problem four years ago and the big apples just lingered on the shelves.”

He said: “People in this country like to bite into an apple about 65 to 70mm. But with pears it’s the other way around. This year the Conference pears are about 60mm, which is good because we can’t sell pears below 50 to 55mm in diameter.”

Mr Barlow said that the demand for English produce from supermarkets was extraordinary. “At last it seems consumers have got the message that English apples really do taste better and with the interest in buying local and seasonal, supermarkets are anxious to satisfy customer demands.”

Demand for English apples and pears is outstripping supply and each of the high street chains is in fierce competition to source home-grown fruit and to promote old English heritage varieties.

Two new varieties growing in England for the first time, are also going on sale. Jazz, an apple which is bright red over green and yellow, was originally developed in New Zealand. It is crunchy and juicy with a hint of pear taste. Kanzi, a red-striped apple with white flesh, has a fresh flavour which produces a fizziness in the mouth.

The main commercial orchards are in the South East and are found throughout Kent, East and West Sussex, Surrey and Hampshire.

While apples and pears are a success story for British horticulture this year, the heavy rainfall has taken its toll on green vegetables. Flooding has denuded the pea crop by at least 40 per cent, and there are similar losses for broccoli, cauliflower, French beans and broad beans.

It is still too early to say whether the main potato crop, due to be harvested in the next four to six weeks, has been affected by the heavy rain.

Farmers are concerned about the level of blight on potatoes which were left in waterlogged fields and saturated soil. There are fears that many tonnes will rot during storage and the full impact may not be known until April. It is too early to predict the crop for onions, carrots, parnsips and Brussels sprouts.

Core figures

— 205,000 tonnes of apples are grown in England, a market worth £192 million

— 45,000 tonnes are Cox’s, worth £49 million

— 8,000 tonnes are Braeburn, worth £11.9 million

— 5,500 tonnes are Egremont, worth £7.5 million

Doing well: Gala, Cox’s apples (not Braeburn) Pears

Not so well: Peas Broccoli Cauliflower French beans and broad beans Blackcurrants English plums

Source: English Apples and Pears, Maynards Farm, Times database