North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["O'Barr, R. D." <topgun@otelco.net>]

Does the Butternut tree require 2 varieties for pollination?
Topgun
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Lucky Pittman" <lucky.pittman@murraystate.edu>
To: <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>; <nutgrowers@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 29, 2005 9:27 AM
Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Fwd: Protecting the Butternut Tree


>
> >The Sept 2004 issue of the NNGA Nutshell included an article from Dr.
> >Charles Spurgeon, the NNGA Butternut Inventory Committee Chairman.
> >In it he summarized some of his experiences of 25 years with grafted
> >butternut, buartnut, and heartnut(all on eastern BW rootstock) in his
> >grove, which has a 'well-developed and well-nourished naturally-occurring
> >strain of the Sirococcus fungus'.
>
> 'Ayers', 'Bountiful', 'Coble #1', and 'Kenworthy' - all selections which
> have been propagated as 'butternut' for years - are healthy, but recent
> genetic testing has revealed these to be, in actuality, buartnuts -
hybrids
> of butternut and heartnut.
> Eight other named butternut clones(Bear Creek, Beckwith, Booth, Buckley,
> Chamberlin, Creighton, My Joy, VanSyckle) in his grove are all severely
> affected and in decline, while some known hybrids are mildly affected.
>
> Dr. Spurgeon put forward the following suggestions, based on his
experience:
> "1. All true butternuts are at risk from the Sirococcus fungus and those
> that appear healthy are either hybrids with Japanese walnut(or the
heartnut
> bud sport), or are in isolated stands that have not been exposed to the
fungus.
>   2. Butterjap and buarts are variably tolerant of the Sirococcus fungus;
> resistance ranges from partial to complete.
>   3. Pure Japanese walnut and its bud sport heartnut are completely
> tolerant of Sirococcus, presumably because both evolved together."
>
> Dr. Spurgeon's take-home message was:
> "The BAD news  - pure butternut is a dying specie that will likely become
> extinct in the not-too-distant future.  The GOOD news is that hybrids of
> butternut with Japanese walnut and heartnut can be used to replace pure
> butternut - and, in fact, there are several of these hybrids which have
> been mistakenly identified as butternut for several decades.
> The future is already here for  Sirococcus-resistant butternut hybrids."
>
>
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