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nafex - [nafex] Re: Pest resistant apples

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  • From: fuwafuwausagi@muchomail.com
  • To: nafex@yahoogroups.com
  • Subject: [nafex] Re: Pest resistant apples
  • Date: Wed, 26 Sep 2001 21:18:37 -0000

Joe wrote:

A common thread in these mythical "old trees which bore clean fruit
every year" stories is that the tree is old and is growing in an
abandoned farmstead with very few other insect reservoirs. We have
always jumped to the conclusion that the reason for these trees being
clean is due to them being some magical cultivar. I have to believe
that the environmental conditions of the trees is more important than
the cultivar.

My reply:

I live near a busy street called "Orchard Road"...apparently the name
use to fit, now it is more like Suburban Sprawl Avenue. The point
however is I have many opportunities to find "old" trees that are
bearing healthy fruit with no human intervention. It helps that the
Park District knows of my interests and make a point to note trees as
they find them. Anyway, for a couple of years I would get all excited
about the "clean fruit" I would find and the super cool varities that
would result from my breeding attempts...well, it hasn't exactly
worked out that way...in fact, had I actually used my training I would
have saved myself a whole lot of time.

I would graft these trees over to M27 and set them out. Funny but
they were crunched and munched by every critter, every insect that one
could imagine. So I began to think, and being the ever curious yet
slothful ball of fur that I am, that thinking usually involves a cold
bottle of Dr. Pepper and some feeble excuse to the wife about how I
have something important to do...but I digress...

One sunny day I sat near a stream admiring the deer laying under the
trees, fondly noting that the branches were up high, a sure sign of
deer pruning, I was over joyed at my talent for noticing the obvious
when it dawned on me. I hopped on over to the tree and watched the
deer flee, and then I smelled it...mint...wild mint everywhere...to be
precise freshly crushed wild mint...growing underneath in the shade of
the tree...and surrounding the tree, wild flowers of all varieties,
thousands upon thousands of them...

So there we have it, beautiful apples growing in an untilled meadow,
surrounded by wild flowers, and undeneath swarths of mint, freshly
crushed by the prancing and pawing of little deer, who must delight in
crunching on the fallen apples along with the squirrels, rabbits,
skunks, racoons, all supplying fertilizer at regular intervals...I
don't know about you , but that is not much like my yard...no wonder
the apples were nice, they were living in paradise...

the fluffy one



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