North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Heron Breen <breen@fedcoseeds.com>]

3 or 4 weeks ago, folks were "listing" about Reliance peach and I posted that 
some 
strains were likely the result of seed propagation followed by cuttings 
distribution. Lon Rombough asked if I could check with John Meader, Elywn 
Meader's 
son, about possible original trees. 
John is, as luck has it, visiting very soon with someone that his dad grafted 
a 
tree for. Hopefully that will not be a dead end. Elywn Meader grafted trees 
every 
spring as a regular practice and distributed them to friends and interested 
parties. He also sent material readily to Federal Repositories. 
It is most likely, if Elywn's original wood is still the source of a 
repositories 
listed collection (albeit maybe a few propagation generations removed) that 
those 
are reliable sources. If his original material died and was replaced by 
commerce 
stock, there is a possiblity of doubtful identity. 
John will get back to me as he picks his brain and looks through some of his 
father's correspondence. Most likely 70% plus of the commercial offerings are 
correct, but having a genetic check a couple decades later is not a bad idea. 
I'll offer wood or rooted cuttings for a few bucks (gas and time)+ 
shipping/handling to interested parties if an original tree surfaces.
sincerely,
Heron Breen
zone 4, Maine