Apple Tree winter Hardiness
- Thread starter sandbur
- Start date
I made it to my Prairie Spy and to a Rome now too. They looked okay, other than some browsing damage.
I rechecked the Honeycrisp that has flaking bark (photo earlier). It is flaking off like that in random areas, top to bottom, on all sides of the trunk.
I rechecked the Cortland (photo earlier). The spot in the photo is the only thing that looks unusual on it.
I rechecked the Honeycrisp that has flaking bark (photo earlier). It is flaking off like that in random areas, top to bottom, on all sides of the trunk.
I rechecked the Cortland (photo earlier). The spot in the photo is the only thing that looks unusual on it.
Quick walkthrough on my older trees today and noticed the Winesap and Moonglow pear were both showing lots of damage. On both trees it looked like 2 or 3 inches of dead limbs at the end of every branch. Next week when I prune I'll cut them all back to just above a live bud.
Both trees are noted as zone 5, but we got down to -31.
Both trees are noted as zone 5, but we got down to -31.
chummer
5 year old buck +
After first assessment the following younger trees appear to have wintered well. We had a few days -20-30.
Golden Hornet. Very excited this tree is going on it’s 4th leaf so I think it is in the clear.
Sweet sixteen b.118
Cox orange pippin b.118
Redfield m.11
Franklin b.118
Bonkers, after sever winter die back year one it hasn’t happened again (6th leaf) b.118
It also appears I will have my first crop of dolgo and Kerr
Liberty, enterprise, various pears, still dead.
Ayers zone 5 pear still alive (6th leaf) appears to have fruit spurs. Can’t explain that one.
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
^^^^ Good to hear you have some survivors up there Chummer. How big is your Bonkers tree now ?? Our Bonkers is on Antonovka rootstock and it's about 12 ft. tall (6th leaf this year), and it's a hefty tree. Good heavy wood.
chummer
5 year old buck +
Two are probably 8-9’ trained properly. One is a mutant. It has two trunks from about a foot above the ground that go out at good angles and they are 6-7’ tall. Two trees for the price of one. I left them both in case one died off but after a couple years I became fond of how they looked and were growing. Tree looks like a horse shoe.
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Apple Junkie
5 year old buck +
With nurseries, determining zone hardiness seems to be an imprecise science. Your experience is hard science. Thanks for passing this information along chummer.
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
Chummer - Those cracks in the bark look like sunscald ( also known as winter injury, frost cracking, etc. ). Homerj may have hit the nail. Try the mix he suggested and paint it on your tree trunks.
Sandbur paints his trees and uses several layers of window screen around his tree trunks. It shields the trunks from the sun heating the trees too much at the WRONG time, which causes the cracking of the bark. He seems to have good luck with his methods. It might save the trees you have left. FWIW.
Sandbur paints his trees and uses several layers of window screen around his tree trunks. It shields the trunks from the sun heating the trees too much at the WRONG time, which causes the cracking of the bark. He seems to have good luck with his methods. It might save the trees you have left. FWIW.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
I don’t think this winter hardiness is completely figured out. This zone establishment, zone hardiness is (are?) just guidelines.
There has to be some other differences such as summer heat/drought stress effecting winter hardiness, late fall growth,rootstock, and maybe snow load or some other factor in what Chummer sees versus what I see.
The edge of the plains is quite different that the same usda zones in the east.
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Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
I agree, Bur, the zone thing is not precise. You and Chummer are in some of the most hostile cold, snow and ice climates in winter. Maybe if the rootstock is hardy enough - the variety of apple isn't for the most extreme regions ?? As you said - maybe there are other stress factors that are playing into Chummer's situation. Here in the East, we had a silly amount of rain last year. Maybe too much for apple tree health going into winter ??
Chummer - Are there any native old apple trees around that region you could maybe get scions from to graft some locally hardy new trees from ?? If any of those old, upper N.Y. apple trees have survived for years, they might be a source of tough survivor scions.
Chummer - Are there any native old apple trees around that region you could maybe get scions from to graft some locally hardy new trees from ?? If any of those old, upper N.Y. apple trees have survived for years, they might be a source of tough survivor scions.
chummer
5 year old buck +
You haven’t heard of my Center Field Apple? It’s only the best deer apple in the Northeast. I have been grafting it for two years and have 4 growing in their final home. I will be grafting a few more this year. It is a completely disease resistant tree (and I have severe FB out breaks), blooms late, holds apples into November, and tastes great. I will also be grafting from two local trees I named RedPing and YellowPing. Guess how I came up with those three names.
I have 32 native trees I have released and nursed back to health. All of them have produced Apples at some point. Many get FB every year and loose most of their apples. All but 5-6 drop their apples by end of September. The three I named are the healthiest trees that hold their apples the longest so that works out nice. I probably will not buy another grafted Apple tree. The ones I finished up planting this year were ordered two years ago. Once I figure how to graft and get them through a winter after the graft takes(hasn’t happened yet), I will be grafting everything over to the three I named, Kerr, dolgo, and Chestnut. I am trying a top working experiment this year where I am going to graft 7’ and up on the trees. I have a feeling anything lower that that will be broke during winter.
sandbur
5 year old buck +
I hear of these native apples out east. Where I live, 14/15 native or naturalized apples are crabs.
We are near the end of the range of the native prairie crab, ioensis.
Either, climate/ soils have done this or else our area hasn’t been settled long enough for a larger apple seed bank or genetics to get involved.
Most realistic farming here has been about 150 years or so. The big old trees I see on farms tend to be dolgos and those tend to be 50 or so miles south and west of me on better soils.
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We are near the end of the range of the native prairie crab, ioensis.
Either, climate/ soils have done this or else our area hasn’t been settled long enough for a larger apple seed bank or genetics to get involved.
Most realistic farming here has been about 150 years or so. The big old trees I see on farms tend to be dolgos and those tend to be 50 or so miles south and west of me on better soils.
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chummer
5 year old buck +
Same here. Overwhelming number of apples in my area are golf ball size. I have 4 out of 30 trees that have big yellow apples. The rest are one bite apples.
Apple Junkie
5 year old buck +
The beauty of natural selection over grafting, is that natural selection offers up a brand-new apple every time. You will end up with many losers, but some winners too - like your Center Field Apple, RedPing and YellowPing. Your winners have all the attributes you’re looking for, and you know they will thrive in your location. Who knows, you may have the next Franklin growing in your back 40… the Tug Hill Trophy?
