North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[rmelrose@danvilleVT.net]

Since there is a discussion of cherries in zones 3/4 let's see if anyone
can offer me advice -- helpful would be nice but I am interested in any! I
have tried many sour cherries and Evans/Bali (I bought both before I
realized they were the same!) grows well here on the 3/4 boundary -- indeed
it throws rootsprouts. On the other hand I do not get significant
quantities of fruit. We have plenty of birds helping themselves but that is
not the crucial problem. Typically what happens with Evans and the others
is that they flower prolifically and appear to be setting heavy crops. Then
late in `Spring' -- just after petal drop for the cherries -- a fungal
attack occurs. I suspect it is some form of `brown rot'. This pretty much
destroys the crop and sets the trees themselves back. The clusters of
cherries with their attendant leaves turn brown and eventually dry up. Just
a few survive. Does anyone have any suggestions? (I have heard the `give
up' one).

I currently have

Flowering:
Evans/Bali
Meteor
Early Richmond
Surefire

Young:
Erdi Jubileum
Mesabi

Previously also:
North Star [The last one died this year, hardy but seems very 
fungus-sensitive]
Balaton [sunscald, I will try again]
Danube [Did not get established]
Montmorency [I don't think it is hardy after 3 tries]
Morello [Lasted 5 years]

and typically get about 5 cherries off each established tree!

Richard

PS. I did have one sweet cherry get established and flower. This was sold
to me as `Yellow Glass'. I am pretty sure I let sunscold kill it or it
could have been winter injury -- I was much less experienced then. Does
anyone know any source for this, I would certainly try it again.

> 
> Hi Steve; The Evans cherry was named by Dr. I EvanNorth Stars. He found it 
> growing here in my area. The tree he observed was originally grown just 
> north of here in an area called Horse Hill. The tree has been grown in our 
> area for probably 70-80 years. I live in the neighborhood were Dr. Evans 
> first observed the tree and know the people who had the tree. They 
> originally obtained it from friends near Horse Hill. There are several 
> opinions on where the tree actually originated, but it is probably Eastern 
> European or Russian in origin. In the early 1900"s there was lot of plant 
> material imported into Canada from the Russia. It's quite hard to trace the 
> original source of the tree. Your description of the tree and fruit is dead 
> on. It grows very well in the Edmonton/Sherwood Park area. I dug up some 
> suckers this spring. I also dug up suckers 4 years ago and the tree is 
> performing very well. The University of Saskatchewan has developed some 
> very good cherries for colder climates- Carmine
>  jewel, Valentine, Romeo, Juliet, Rose, Crimson Passion. are some of the 
> varieties developed for our climate.They also have a great apple breeding 
> program and are working on honeyberries as well. If any one wants some info 
> they can contact me.
>   Cheers 
>   Kim Maser-Special Consultant Canadian Sources
> 
> loneroc <loneroc@mwt.net> wrote:
>   My understanding of the issue is that Evans was the name of the fellow up 
> in
> Alberta who widely distributed a cherry that had been locally grown for
> decades, especially by Italian immigrants (though I may not be remembering
> the immigrants' country correctly). Bill MacKentley, of St. Lawrence
> Nurseries, received the plant, whether directly from Dr Evans (sometimes
> spelled Euans) or not I don't know, and named the cherry after his daughter,
> Bali. The rest of the world referred to the cherry by the name of its
> "discoverer", who was, apparently, too modest to name it after himself, and
> MacKentley continues selling it under the Bali name.
> 
> This doesn't account for the differences between the "two" cherries that the
> original poster has observed. I suspect that there may have been a nursery
> mix up somewhere or perhaps there is a sport involved. The plant I received
> from St. Lawrence fits the written descriptions I've seen of Evans. It has
> been hardy and magnificently productive here in a warming zone 3. The
> cherries ripen to a medium red--they are edible, though veeery tart when
> ripe. They make a beautiful pie and preserves. I always detect a certain
> degree of astringency that might not appeal to some pallets. You need more
> sugar in the pie than you would for most fruit in order for family members
> not to sniveled, "it's too sour", though I prefer to add the extra sugar in
> the form of ice cream.
> 
> I've grown Mesabi and North Star in the past. Mesabi nearly died in a cold
> winter and I took it out. North Star provided a mediocre crop and the tree
> was puny. I cut it down, too. Evans is, after eight or nine years, a small
> tree, 12-15 feet high, and it looks like it's not going to get much larger.
> The only problems that I've had with its culture is that it sends up
> suckers, much as a Prunus americana does, far from the tree. I have my
> plums and Evans in grass and suckers will appear in planting beds 40-50 feet
> away from the mother trees--kind of a pain. The Evans does have some sort
> of trunk damage on the SW side. It's not sun scald. I left a stake in the
> ground next to the tree too long and the resulting wound is still there,
> bubbling gum occasionally. I suspect that the original wound was infected
> with something but the tree's overall health seems fine and the wound,
> though getting a bit larger, seems to have stayed about the same, relative
> to the size of the expanding trunk.
> 
> I would recommend the Evans cherry (it's always kind of bugged me that St.
> Lawrence renamed it--maybe they had Dr. Evans permission?) to cold climate
> growers. There's been nothing comparable that is hardy until the recent U
> of Saskatchewan releases. Anyone tried those?
> 
> Steve H, Lone Rock, WI USDA zone 3 where Japanese beetles appeared for
> the first time this month:-(
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Steve" 
> To: "North American Fruit Explorers" 
> Sent: Thursday, July 26, 2007 11:07 PM
> Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Bali vs Evans
> 
> 
>> I was hoping someone would have the answer to this. I recently read a
>> description of the Evans cherry and it nearly made me want to try a
>> cherry tree again.
>> Years ago, I tried a Northstar cherry. After it died, I planted a Bali.
>> Both had the same history. They grew well and looked very promising at
>> first. Later they would bloom but never produced more than a handful of
>> cherries. When the trunk diameter got up to about 4 inches or slightly
>> bigger, they just died.
>> If, in fact, the Bali and Evans are the same, there is little point in
>> planting an Evans, at least until global warming kicks in. ;-)
>>
>> Steve Wilson
>>
>> jfruth@tds.net wrote:
>>
>> > Someone once mentioned that Bali and Evans cherries are the same
> plant
>> >with different names. I have evidence to the contrary. My Evans, that I
>> >bought from FEDCO, has fire-engine red fruits that are 3/4" to 7/8" in
>> >diameter. A friend of mine bought a Bali from St. Lawrence Nursery. His
>> >fruits are purplish and run 1/2" to 5/8". Does anyone else have access
> to
>> >both varieties for a comparison of my observations?
>> >
>> >Jim Fruth
>> >Brambleberry Farm
>> >Pequot Lakes, MN 56472
>> >For jams, jellies & syrups:
>> >www.bberryfarm.com
>> >(877)265-6856 [Store]
>> >(218)831-7018 [My Cell]
>> >