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  • From: list@ginda.us
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] heirloom apple trees
  • Date: Mon, 3 May 2004 19:29:44 -0400

If you want a full-size tree, you will want to shop for a suitable rootstock. The stock has more influence than the scion in the ultimate size of the tree, and in how fast it grows. I've seen trees on Antonovka seedling rootstock that were a comfortable size for climbing or sitting under, although that's usually grown further north, so it might not be the best choice. If you can't find someone selling the tree you want on a seedling, you might try M111, which is a relatively large clonal stock. Or, you can plant the tree deep enough that the scion is partly below the ground and can root itself.

As for the scion: Most apples are reasonably ornamental in bloom. If you want a "great" flowering tree, you might want to consider the crabs apples (more blossoms). I've never eaten them, but a lot of people around here like eating some of the larger crabs. Centennial comes to mind, but I'll let people who've actually tried them comment.

"Taste great" is in the mouth of the taster. Personally, I like a strong, tart apple. I am trying to coax an Ashmead's Kernal (ugly little fruit, but wonderful flavor) into producing in my less-than-fully-sunny backyard. My brother, on the other hand, says, "if I'm going to eat an apple, I want it to taste good", by which he means apples that I wouldn't bother to eat - very sweet with a mild flavor. Also, how much do you care about texture? No one likes a mealy apple, but some people only like apples that crunch, others like a soft apple, or a firm one.

For ease of organic production, I've heard good things about Liberty. The fruits are fairly small (so maybe it has lots of blossoms?? I've never checked) and I find them very tasty in a Macintosh sort of way. The tree is more adaptable than a Mac, growing good fruit in central NJ where the Macs all turn to mush. I gather the chief problem is that the window for picking perfectly ripe fruit is relatively narrow, which is to say, the tree doesn't have any more serious problems to complain about. My uncle grows a sibling of Liberty which produces very nice quality fruit with no attention at all. (The fruit isn't as tasty as Liberty, though.) In a more "Jonathan" style, I have enjoyed Akane, which is also scab resistant. It is also small, and that depletes my knowledge of it.

Try asking your client what apples (s)he especially likes, and that will be a good starting point for finding something tasty in the same sort of way.

Ginda

On May 3, 2004, at 11:36 AM, Louisa Rogoff Thompson wrote:

I'm a landscape designer who emphasizes producing high-quality fruits in the landscape. I have clients who recall apple trees suitable for climbing, though around here (southcentral PA orchard country) all the apple trees are now dwarfs. (Annual pruning makes them look truly deformed.)

Can anyone suggest cultivars of full-size apple trees that would make great flowering trees in the landscape, grow big enough to provide shade and to climb and sit in, and produce tasty apples? They would have to be managed organically. The fruit would not have to look perfect, but would have to taste great. Our biggest disease problem here is scab.

Thank you.
Louisa Thompson
Adams County PA (between Gettysburg and the Blue Ridge)




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