North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Lucky Pittman <lucky.pittman@murraystate.edu>]

Tom,
If 'edible crabs' or 'lunchbox apples' will serve the purpose of enhancing 
pollenation, you might as well go with 'edible' selections, over mere 
ornamentals.
From my own minimal experience, I'd strongly recommend considering 
Centennial and Kerr - both have a very good quality fruit, in addition to 
their potential as good pollenizers.
Chestnut crab, from what I've read, consistently wins taste comparisons, 
though I've not been fortunate enough to taste one yet, as my young trees 
haven't reached fruiting age yet.
I've also seen good reports, on this list, for Wickson, though I'm now 
convinced that the tree I purchased as Wickson was mislabeled.
Callaway crab, though currently considered primarily as an ornamental, is, 
hands-down, the favorite apple for my kids - it's a heavy producer of 
large(for an ornamental) tasty red/yellow-fleshed crabapples, sometimes 
approaching 1.5-2 inches in diameter.  Dirr claims it has good disease 
resistance in The South.  I suspect they'd make good jelly, but my kids eat 
all my young tree will produce - none ever make it back to the house.
Of the red-fleshed varieties that I've grown, only Winter Red Flesh has 
fruited yet.  It's a pretty little tree - both in bloom and in fruit, but 
the fruits - at least the ones I've been able to beat the kids & critters 
to, have been quite tart & somewhat astringent, though they probably 
weren't fully ripe when picked.


Lucky Pittman
USDA Zone 6
Hopkinsville, KY