North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[david liezen <chandos49@hotmail.com>]

Richard,
>From the volume of volumes and websites I've read in the past three years, 
>and seen in orchards and back yards, crabs are smaller apples - generally an 
>inch and a half or less in diameter. No doubt someone has defined it in 
>print somewhere. Reading the info at Greenmantle Nursery describing the 
>crabs and other apples developed by the late great Mr. Etter will give you 
>an excellent example.
Crabs are not simply spitters - too sour or bitter for eating out of hand - 
as I had once thought. Some are reputed to be good eaten in hand. Many cider 
apples are larger and ill-suited to anything but squeezing for cider, due to 
sour or bitter constituents that add valuable elements to finished cider, and 
that would taste to me like the crabapples I tried as a kid. 
As to thorns, from my understanding, that is a genetic trait found in some 
apples, and most hawthorns (hence their name) and other related genera such 
as service berries.
When growing out apples from seed, all kinds of latent things can show.
What fun to try and observe the result. Enjoy,
Dave Liezen

> From: murphman108@msn.com
> To: nafex@lists.ibiblio.org
> Date: Fri, 29 Apr 2011 21:16:34 +0000
> Subject: [NAFEX] Crab vs. Standard apple trees?
> 
> 
> I have a stupid question (yes, add it to my pile)
> 
> What is the Botanical difference between a Crab apple and a 'standard' 
> apple?
> 
> Do all young apple trees have those little spikey looking branches?
> Does that only happen to seedling trees?
> Is there a book or a paper describing these physical traits, if any 
> actually exist?
> I've been growing apple seedlings for about 4 years now, with a lot of 
> variation.
> Mostly for use as rootstocks and experiments.
> This year I planted 9 Jonafree seeds and 9 Hidden Rose seeds just for 
> ha-has.
> The other little seedling from last years planting are 'Rte. 2 Crabs' from 
> Farmington, ME
> They are really small.
> 
> PS Jonafree appears to take longer to break dormancy than my Braeburb and 
> Wolf River.
> Possibly a good tree for late-frost threats, like my z4 place.
> 
> Murph
> 
> R A Murphy Jr
> 
> 
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