Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Mystery apple trees

nafex@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Douglas Woodard <dwoodard@becon.org>
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Mystery apple trees
  • Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2011 23:24:28 -0500

I think that these old trees were often grafted low and planted with the graft below ground level. The top would scion root and they didn't have to worry about whether the rootstock would suit for hardiness or whatever. There was a period when nurseries would buy cheap rootstocks grown from seed from cider makers in Normandy, which might have been thought unreliable, especially for coldhardiness.

Sometimes a tree would be topworked on a strong, or vigourous, or disease-resistant (collar rot?) or hardy framework. I think Tolman Sweet was often used for this. I believe Esopus Spitzenburg was thought cnaker-prone and Mother was considered a slow grower, so they may have been candidates for topworking.

Doug Woodard
St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada


On 14/02/2011 11:08 PM, Alan Yelvington wrote:
I live in NW PA and there are abandoned family orchards all over the
place. People tell me that the tree's a Northern Spy or whatever; Some
of these trees are OLD standard trees, but I never see a graft union on
the trunks. Do the grafts eventually disappear, or did the scion take
over and the tree "go standard" on them?

Al Yelvington
Russell, PA




Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page