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  • From: list@ginda.us
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Hardiness Terms?
  • Date: Sun, 11 Jan 2004 15:55:48 -0500

If a large catalog grower, selling standard varieties, is communicating clearly, they will give a range of USDA zones that the plant is hardy in, possibly with some commentary about the differences between western and eastern, or inland and coastal conditions. If this grower just says "hardy", they really aren't telling you anything.

If a small catalog grower, selling oddball stuff, describes something as "hardy", it means that it does well where-ever they are located in almost all years. If they say "very hardy", it means this one had less damage than other cultivars one year when they had a very harsh winter. If they say "moderately hardy", it means they can grow it, but they have to protect the plant, or they get a little damage every year, or they get some damage every few years.


There aren't a lot of nurseries in my area, so I'm usually buying from people either well north or well south of me. As a result, I generally look for "very hardy" or else will take anything even "somewhat tender" or "moderately hardy". Rarely do I look for plants that are at least "hardy". :)

Ginda
eastern Mass., zone 6

On Jan 11, 2004, at 10:52 AM, Tom Olenio wrote:

Hi,

I would prefer a specific temperature be given for hardiness, for although not absolute, it would be lot less vague.  However, that is just wishful thinking.

How does a large catalog grower, that has a very wide market (even national), use terms that have "local" connotations to indicate hardiness?.

Maybe the USDA defines these terms somewhere???

Tom
 
 

Dean Kreutzer wrote:
>In regards to grapes, what do these terms mean in hardiness temperature
>degree ranges;
>
>      moderately hardy
>      hardy
>      very hardy
>
>These terms may be used rather loosely in catalogs, but there must be a
>rather standard definition.

I think any catlalog that used these terms to describe hardiness either did
not do enough fact finding or just didn't care enough to print them.  The
meaning of these terms are highly dependant on where a person is located;
where I live I would say that -40F is very hardy, on the east coast it might
be -30F, down south it might be -20F or -10F, etc.  This is like asking a
person how tall they are and getting replies like "Tall/Average/Short".

Where I live, we are pretty much guaranteed -35F every year, yet we have
plants like Bartlett pears, and Himrod/Flame Seedless grapes in our retail
chain stores with the word "hardy" in their descriptions.  I find this very
unprofessional and misleading, especially to the general consumer who may
not be the wiser.

I would think that most fruiting plants should have at least a USDA or
Canada hardiness zone rating that can be applied.

Dean
USDA zone 3

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--
Thomas Olenio
Ontario, Canada
Hardiness Zone 5b
 
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