Would you buy Dolgo plugs if they existed?

[SD51555]

I was thumbing through the Itasca catalog and noticed that he offers contract growing and custom growing for orders of 500 trees or more.

If he could be talked into sourcing and growing at least 500 dolgo seedlings in a larger plug, would you be interested in buying some? If so, how many?

My thinking is, if he'd direct ship them to each of us, we could get our hands on some top notch rootstock or simple late hanging apple trees, and for far less than what we're paying today, that is if we can even find them.

 

[sandbur]

Dolgo drops about Labor day for me. I do have some seedlings that should start to bear within a year or two.

Most years I could provide some dolgo seeds.

A group of us also has an order together of 100 dolgo rootstock.

 

[West Branch]

I am going to try to grow some dolgos I don't really have a plan of how to go about this. I have styro containers from Itasca and rootmaker flats to start close to 300 trees. Probably will be mainly dolgos and wild plums. Might start some inside in March and wait till the end of April to start the rest outside.

 

[sandbur]

Probably not. I planted a bunch of bareroot Dolgos a number of years ago on my old place. From the time I put them in the ground it was apparent there was great variability in the stock. Some had leaves similar to true Dolgo, some didn't. Seed raised stock is just that...I'd probably pay $.50- $1 each if I was looking for cheap crabapples with the chance of having some Dolgo form/fruit.

edit...I'd probably be more inclined to beg some Dolgo seed off of Art and grow my own seedlings...

I wonder if an isolated stand of dolgos would provide crabs that were more consistant?

My mautre dolgo has chestnut and NW Greening close to it.

 

[sandbur]

Chris-when I was kid, just southwest of Longville, the only apple tree we had was a dolgo.

They were tough and I think a good choice.

 

[SD51555]

Chris-when I was kid, just southwest of Longville, the only apple tree we had was a dolgo.

They were tough and I think a good choice.

Have we been talking dolgo from the standpoint that they'd survive further north and put out good apples? I had myself convinced they were late hangers. Did I get my wires crossed? Entirely possible.

 

[West Branch]

Our big dolgo in the farm yard still probably had half hanging the last week of September this past year but was empty shortly into Oct. May have just been something with the weather this past year too, I never really paid attention in prior years. It is a big old tree, it seems like most old farms around here have one. My dad said some travelling salesman came through years ago selling crabapple and plum seedlings out of his trunk.

 

[greyphase]

Majority of my Dolgo have dropped by mid-Sept here in Pa.

 

[j-bird]

I would be interested in something that dropped oct, nov and dec in my growing zone - not sure if Dolgo fits that bill or not.

 

[SD51555]

The wild card apple i found a few years ago on my uncles place had nice apples hanging into december this year. What's weird, is that when I found them the first year, the apples were small, yellow and rock hard into november. After pruning last winter this tree now produced about golf ball sized apples that rotted and hung nicely. I am going to use some of those for grafting onto my siberians I planted last spring. I'm also pondering doing some harrelson and perhaps fireside as well. I've got 12 siberian crabs going now from last spring, and I'm putting another 20 or so manchurian crabs in this spring to replace trees that didnt' take in the tubes.

 

[bwoods11]

I would consider this. A few years ago, I looked into Swamp White Oak custom plugs.

 

[West Branch]

We released the only wild crab I know of in our area in the end of December. It only had 2 apples that I saw and picked in 2014 to take the seeds. Size is similar to a dolgo, maybe slightly larger, and it is more yellow. In 2013 it had more apples and the ones I ate were tasty, not as sour as dolgo. Hopefully this year I can see how late it hangs now that we got rid of the huge birch and box elders on the south side of it. If these work I may have some for you SD, I think where I live is somewhat close to where your family is from in Mcleod county based on some of your posts I have seen.

 

[sandbur]

Dolgo is most often ripe for me about Labor day.
I have three seedlings that have a dolgo sized crab that is still on the tree. I suspect there is ranetka blood in them from descriptions I have read. I have other trees form the same seed collection with much smaller fruit 1/4 inch.

 

[SD51555]

We released the only wild crab I know of in our area in the end of December. It only had 2 apples that I saw and picked in 2014 to take the seeds. Size is similar to a dolgo, maybe slightly larger, and it is more yellow. In 2013 it had more apples and the ones I ate were tasty, not as sour as dolgo. Hopefully this year I can see how late it hangs now that we got rid of the huge birch and box elders on the south side of it. If these work I may have some for you SD, I think where I live is somewhat close to where your family is from in Mcleod county based on some of your posts I have seen.

Sending you a PM