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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] apples, early and keeping

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  • From: Lucky Pittman <lucky.pittman@murraystate.edu>
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] apples, early and keeping
  • Date: Thu, 14 Jul 2005 11:55:14 -0500

One 'early' apple(though probably not as early as YT or RJ), with reasonable keeping qualities, that hasn't been mentioned in recent discussions, is MonArk.
I've had one for years but have yet to get an apple from it - but let me qualify that it's not necessarily the tree's fault - at about it's 3rd leaf, something happened - I think voles probably girdled it over the winter or ate its roots or something, but by the time I realized something was amiss - 'cause it wasn't leafing out - twigs were beginning to look kind of shriveled. Still had some green cambium when I scratched 'em, so I took a chance and snipped one off and grafted it onto a new rootstock, where it took and has grown nicely, but hasn't yet bloomed - probably next year.

Following is a note from Charlotte, at Vintage Virginia Apples, that I'd saved from the list, back in 2003:
"I have two MonArk trees that went in in 1998, bought from Ed
Fackler's Rocky Meadow. We had about three apples in 2001 and perhaps a
peck and a half in 2002 which was a horrible year in just about every way
here--no winter, early spring and bloom, late freeze, damp and drizzley into
June followed by unrelenting drought and searing heat into September.
Most apples were unripe on Monday and overdone by Thursday...one just wanted
to
cry. But the MonArks were okay. I don't think we picked them at the
optimal point, which was a real challenge this year and we are not very
experienced at this to boot, but they kept fairly well in cold storage
around 35-37 degrees for six to eight weeks or more. They are a big red
apple, red over green really, and have a very fine flavor for an early
apple. We have a small new upscale food market here to which I am selling,
and I think they will be very well received there. This and Pristine are
our best flavored early apples thus far. I have both these varieties on
MM-111. What else can I tell you. Ask me again in August."

I still don't know exactly when to expect MonArk to ripen here, though Hoyt Adair reported it ripening in early July down in north Alabama.

Lucky Pittman
USDA Cold Zone 6
AHS Heat Zone 7
Hopkinsville, KY
elevation 575 ft.




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