North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Douglas Woodard <dwoodard@becon.org>]

My only direct knowledge of Liberty comes from some apples I bought last 
October from a local grower in the St. Catharines farmers' market here 
in the Niagara Peninsula. To my taste it was not a gourmet apple but was 
definitely superior to most supermarket apples and very pleasant. This 
was the more impressive to me because this grower normally produces 
relatively starchy and ill-flavoured apples, I suspect because they are 
over-free with the nitrogen. Some Jonagolds I bought from them around 
the same time were the worst Jonagolds I have ever tasted; I would rate 
them inferior to some supermarket Empires. Conceivably picking time may 
also have been a factor.

Doug Woodard
St. catharines, Ontario, Canada


Claude Jolicoeur wrote:
> A 09:50 09.01.17 -0500, vous avez écrit :
>  >>>>
> In my business, where I grow, install and manage bearing age fruit 
> trees, my customers enjoy the reliability of Liberty's crops and how the 
> fruit can sometimes be cosmetically perfect without a single fungicide 
> spray. Its scab and car resistance are well known but I have also found 
> it to be relatively resistant to fly speck and sooty blotch on some 
> sites. However, only a few of my customers consider Liberty one of their 
> favorite apples.
>
>
> I hate the way the tree grows because of its branching habit- it just 
> doesn't put out very much small wood and it is a difficult tree to 
> manage in an efficient shape, anyway, it's an ugly sucker.
>
>
> <<<<
>
> Alan,
> This is interesting that you find the Liberty tree difficult to manage, 
> as I found exactly the opposite - my Liberty tree is on Antonovka 
> seedling root and was planted in 1991. I find it is the easiest tree to 
> manage in my orchard. It is naturally well shaped and every year I only 
> have to remove some of the excessive growth and a branch here or there.
> It is now also the most productive tree of my orchard.
> But where I agree with you is although it is my favorite tree, it is not 
> my favorite apple. But in my opinion, its quality as apple is not that 
> far from my favorites and way above avereage. Climate may have an effect 
> as I have read Liberty had better quality in colder zones.
>
> Claude,
> Quebec