Goldrush

Mahindra3016

5 year old buck +
My goldrush tree did great this year, the only spraying that was done was sevin one time for Japanese beetles.
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Any cedar apple rust? The 3rd leaf I have showed a bit this year but not like I’ve seen on other guys’.


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It had some rust last year, barely any this year.

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Great to hear! I'm in western, Pa. I got a goldrush from turkey creek last year, it grew nice and clean this year. No signs of CAR
 
That is a nice looking tree Mahindra. This variety is quickly becoming one of my favorites too. I planted my first tree in 2018 (B.118), so I only have 2 years’ experience.

I can say with some confidence it is CAR resistant. It also seems to bear a heavy annual crop. In both ’19 and ’20, I had to thin the crop to allow this young tree to put on woody growth. In my experience, it holds well into fall and winter, although I did not make any notes as to exactly how long. My only concern is that I seem to recall reading somewhere that I am at the northern edge of where this tree will survive (5b). I planted a second goldrush this year on P.18 rootstock. It is nice to know others are seeing the same results as I am.
 
CAR resistant? If CAR is a concern, people should plant something other than Goldrush. If you don't have a lot of CAR pressure, Goldrush might do ok and be worth trying. But plenty of folks have posted about how badly their Goldrush have done with CAR.
 
I have 6 Goldrush and CAR is a huge problem
 
Let me start by saying I am no apple botanist. That said, the location (home) where I start my apples the first summer is loaded with spores that cause cedar rust in apples. If a tree is susceptible, clear signs of CAR show up almost immediately. Neither of the Goldrush trees I have started at home showed any significant signs of CAR. I am not disputing what others have seen, but that is my first hand experience.

Others have noted here that the effect of CAR on apples is worse the farther south you are located, so bear that in mind too. Although I do not see CAR on my Goldrush trees, they are vulnerable to apple scab, which hits them quite hard later in the season and can look similar to CAR. All things considered, my Goldrush trees are thriving where I am located in 5b, so use this information as you wish.
 
Ours typically show signs here of CAR , but not quite as bad as Honey Crisp. Still one of my most favorite apples to eat though.
 
There are more than one type of rust. Cedar Apple Rust, Cedar Quince Rust, others? And strains vary by location and in virulence. Plus climatic conditions. So if you think CAR is an issue for you and aren't going to spray, a variety documented to be susceptible to rusts is a wildcard. If you really want to try it and don't plan to spray, go ahead and plant one or two and see. Just don't be prepared that it won't be a healthy, productive tree.

Goldrush should be immune to scab. That was the whole point of the PRI breeding program. Again, strains and climate matter. I have another PRI selection, Winecrisp, that looked to me to have scab this year (zone 6, PA). I can tell the difference between CAR, Frog Eye, Marssonina, and Scab so I'm pretty sure what I saw was scab. It's not good news if scab has mutated enough to defeat the genetic resistance introduced from the the PRI breeding program. Winecrisp and Goldrush have the same Vf gene for scab resistance. Other PRI selections may have other scab resistance genes.
 
Plenty of CAR on my goldrush trees. They also like to grow straight up it seems. Will have some 4th leafs next spring
 
Our Goldrush at camp don't seem to have any problems with CAR - but we have no alternate hosts (Juniper family shrubs, which include Eastern red cedar) for that fungus around us for miles. So no CAR at camp. Scab is around, and so is a bit of frog-eye when it's wet and humid for too long. Pruning so the canopy doesn't get too dense will help with air-flow and keep some funguses to a minimum. Keeping woodier scaffold limbs thinned and pruning out water sprouts, inward-growing branches, and crossing limbs will help with air flow. FWIW.

Camp in NC Pa. mountains, zone 5/6 border.
 
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I let my Goldrush fruit too young and it "runted out". Lesson learned. Have a two year old tree coming along nicely.
 
It is sounding like there are two varieties of Gold Rush Trees. Is it likely that somewhere along the way a tree that looked and acted like Goldrush except with resistance to C.A.R. was erroneously thought to be Goldrush and then got distributed as Goldrush?
 
Goldrush was a CAR disaster for me. Mine got topworked to Yates this spring.
 
Any info I've ever read on Goldrush stated that it WAS susceptible to CAR - but some areas of the country may have more CAR problems than others. (See Native's post above). Some reports say it may affect the leaves, but not so much the fruit. YMMV - depending on your location.
 
It is sounding like there are two varieties of Gold Rush Trees. Is it likely that somewhere along the way a tree that looked and acted like Goldrush except with resistance to C.A.R. was erroneously thought to be Goldrush and then got distributed as Goldrush?
Any plant, or tree, which is grown in very healthy soil will have better defenses against disease and insects than those who are grown in average soil, or even more so than those grown in poor soil.
So I doubt there are 2 separate varieties of Goldrush, but just the variance of Goldrush grown under differing conditions.
 
I bought 1/2 bushel of Goldrush from a local (to my home) orchard. I realize taste is subjective, but ,,,,,,,,those things are my favorite apple to eat, followed by Crimson Topaz. Both are sweet, but have a tart / tangy zing that balances the sweet. They are NOT as sweet as Honeycrisp - but I like a tangier apple more so than hyper-sweet. Both varieties make KILLER additions to home-made applesauce!!

If I had to pick only 1 apple to eat - it would be Goldrush. They keep like bricks, too. I store ours in our chilly garage.
 
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