From: Joe and Ellen Hecksel <jhecksel@voyager.net>
To: nafex@lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Tasty New Pear (fwd)
Date: Thu, 26 Sep 2002 20:36:41 -0400
Charles Paradise wrote:
Can someone calculate out the chance that this variety would mature in the
north in zone 5?
Charles Paradise
Massachusetts/zone 5
Hi Charles:
Nearly 100%. Fruit trees shrug off light frosts. I think it takes a
sustained period of 26 F or less to knock off the leaves and risk
freezing the fruit.
I live near Lansing, Michigan. According to the weather service,
Lansing is zone 5 and has a 140 day growing season. The weather service
predicts first killing frost for Lansing as about Sept 21. Bartlett
ripens about Sept 10 so I expect Blake's Pride would be ready to pick
the last week of September.
Just for points of reference: nearly all other Zone 5 cities are good
for 155 growing days so Lansing is trailing the pack. We are still able
to grow Golden Russet and Northern Spy apples. Geneva, NY lists both
apples as ripening in late October. That is one month after the average
"killing" frost.
By good fortune, I happen to have a small tree (8') of Blake's Pride.
It is very spurry and I expect it to be quite precocious.
--
-Joe Hecksel
My personal web site: http://my.voyager.net/~jhecksel
Bumper crop of racoons, rabbits and woodchucks this year. Send rain.