Crabapple timeline

They nibble on the Nankings and on the crab apples.
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I finally got out to cut my first scions of the year today. The temperature was +27 versus -27 last Saturday. A photo of the tree is attached. The apples are the diameter of a quarter. When I shook the branches, about half of them fell off. There were lots of deer tracks under the tree.
 

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Geez that tree is amazing. What a gift to the animals.
 
Very nice tree Poor Sand. It looks like a tough one to get scions off of. It is a fruiting fool with some serious weight on those branches. Is it one of your wild trees?
 
Chainsaw: Unfortunately, it is not my tree. I saw that tree from the road and then used the county's GIS website to look up the contact information of the landowner. I wrote him a letter asking permission to cut scions. He phoned me back and said it was okay to do. The scions I collected are about 1/8" to 3/16" caliper.

It turns out that the landowner is planning to plant some apple trees this spring and appreciates having somebody to ask about various varieties. It is a win-win situation.
 
Poor Sand ^^^^^^ -
Nice cooperation. The landowner may let you do a bit of pruning on that tree to spur some fresh, bigger scion wood for another year. If you can help each other with apple info - it could turn into a great partnership for both of you.

That tree looks crazy with apples. Super wildlife tree.
 
They nibble on the Nankings and on the crab apples.
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I know its off topic, but how do your Nankings do Art? I have one nice sized one that has not produced yet, but probably because it had no pollinators. I bought him 2 friends this past spring, so maybe I'll get to taste a nanking soon.
 
I know its off topic, but how do your Nankings do Art? I have one nice sized one that has not produced yet, but probably because it had no pollinators. I bought him 2 friends this past spring, so maybe I'll get to taste a nanking soon.

They produce fruit and the birds get most of them. I grab a handful when mowing around them.

They are getting old and some stems die. They seem to readily grow back from the base.


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This seedling has been totally ignored for 10-15 years. I need to give it some care.

It has had no grass control, little pruning, and no fertilizer.


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This seedling has been totally ignored for 10-15 years. I need to give it some care.

It has had no grass control, little pruning, and no fertilizer.


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Do you guys see much “deer value” in malus red splendor crab apples?


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Do you guys see much “deer value” in malus red splendor crab apples?


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The tree on the right is red splendor and they stop and pick at it just a bit before going to the corn plot.

The flowering crabs (with fruit less than 1/2 inch) get some use during years when I have few applecrabs, like this year.

I mostly call red splendor and other flowering crabs, ‘bird crabs’.


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Like Sandbur has noticed with his smaller "bird crabs", our couple un-named crabs have 1/2" to 5/8" fruit - one tree yellow and the other red fruit. But the deer have beaten-in circular trails all around those trees. Every little bit of food helps, and those smaller crabs produce EVERY YEAR. Grouse and turkeys eat them while sitting in those trees.
 
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Our deer hammer the wild "bird crabs" on our place. The fruit is red and about the 1/2" size. Many of them are well past prime and trees have gown up around them over time so there isn't much for regeneration.
 
The red splendor seedlings that remain true to the variety of 1/2 persistent fruit dont see much deer use here except browse but birds and turkey luv em. Along with 3 the darn bears have busted off and killed. But much like dolgo seedlings, u get the occasional one that has bigger fruit like 1" dia or a little bigger and drops earlier before "mummified" on tree if not taken out by birds. Those do get attention from the deer.
 
I visited the camp yesterday, and while there checked on some fairly new apple trees. On my last visit in 12/29, I pulled off all but two apples from a young Goldrush tree. On my return 2/26, those two apples still had not fallen.

Now, I am wondering if it is possible for some varieties to hold TOO late. I pulled one apple, and it came off easily because it was basically rotting on the tree. I left the last one on just to see when it finally will fall of on its own. Good for the bluebirds, maybe not so helpful for the deer.
 

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I visited the camp yesterday, and while there checked on some fairly new apple trees. On my last visit in 12/29, I pulled off all but two apples from a young Goldrush tree. On my return 2/26, those two apples still had not fallen.

Now, I am wondering if it is possible for some varieties to hold TOO late. I pulled one apple, and it came off easily because it was basically rotting on the tree. I left the last one on just to see when it finally will fall of on its own. Good for the bluebirds, maybe not so helpful for the deer.

I accidentally knocked a few off while pruning today and it was mush. Deer are out there every morning and night and there isn’t a single one on the ground.


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I visited the camp yesterday, and while there checked on some fairly new apple trees. On my last visit in 12/29, I pulled off all but two apples from a young Goldrush tree. On my return 2/26, those two apples still had not fallen.

Now, I am wondering if it is possible for some varieties to hold TOO late. I pulled one apple, and it came off easily because it was basically rotting on the tree. I left the last one on just to see when it finally will fall of on its own. Good for the bluebirds, maybe not so helpful for the deer.

Last year my Golden Hornets were still holding some apples when they broke blossom.
 
We have one wild tree where the crabapples shrivel on the branches and are generally ignored by nearly all the wild critters around. I have yet to see a set of hoofprints in the snow under it. I'm happy to share some scions though, if anyone's interested :)
 
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