Wind Gypsy
5 year old buck +
New years weekend was a cold one for sure. Hoping your Trees hold up!
Most productive apple verities
- Thread starter b116757
- Start date
New years weekend was a cold one for sure. Hoping your Trees hold up!
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
Bowsnbucks
5 year old buck +
At our hunting camp - I only spray for bugs - not diseases. CAR isn't a problem for our camp location - no alternate fungal host plants nearby for miles. Our camp apples and crab apples typically get some fly speck and sooty blotch - but the deer don't care. Birds pecking at the fruit is a bigger problem than CAR.
4wanderingeyes
5 year old buck +
I havent sprayed yet. But the last couple years the wasps have been bad, and made nests in the trees.
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
Yes. Did great for two years in a row but kind of down this year. So I am still evaluating before adding to approved list. I will already say, however, that it is resistant to CAR.
b116757
5 year old buck +
My least productive are Red Delicious I’m not sure on root stock. I planted them 20 years ago before I cared about rootstock some dwarfing for sure not very productive in a no spray orchard. I have Redfree and Freedom probably on the same dwarfing rootstock they are healthy trees but poor producer’s but that could easily be do to the rootstock holding them back. I’d give Redfree and Freedom a pass on my rootstock they maybe very productive on standard. As far as I’m concerned dwarfing rootstock is near useless to me and my needs/wants in a orchard. As with any tree planting I wish I would of added standard size trees 20 years ago at the home orchard. The dwarfs would of given me early fruit and the standards my grandchildren would still be enjoying the fruits of my labor from in 100 years. Most of those original trees came from Gurney or Jung seed company’s catalogs. So who knows just what rootstock it was. I still order dwarfing trees to get a verity I want but almost without fail bury the graft anymore.
Apple Junkie
5 year old buck +
Honeycrisp – This is not strong wildlife tee tree in my opinion. It is just not hardy enough to do well in a marginally-tended, un-sprayed orchard. Cutting my losses this year, replacing with a crab.
Snap Stayman – This is the only tree I bought on fall close out at a local nursery - probably root bound. After 6 years, I don’t see much growth, and zero production.
Franklin crab – Just shriveled up and died suddenly. This could be on me, I know others have had success. Possible sun scald from what I could guess.
McIntosh – Healthy tree, but 10 years and not one apple. My impatience may be as much with the rootstock (Antonovka) as with the variety. This combo is slow for me.
Snap Stayman – This is the only tree I bought on fall close out at a local nursery - probably root bound. After 6 years, I don’t see much growth, and zero production.
Franklin crab – Just shriveled up and died suddenly. This could be on me, I know others have had success. Possible sun scald from what I could guess.
McIntosh – Healthy tree, but 10 years and not one apple. My impatience may be as much with the rootstock (Antonovka) as with the variety. This combo is slow for me.
KickapooKid#1
5 year old buck +
Cortland, enterprise and Liberty have been reliable for us. Same with Chestnut, Centennial and Meadows crab. I’m going to try and top work my Honeycrisp to a chestnut crab this spring. Also going to top work my Pristine to Enterprise. I’m really impressed with our Enterprise tree the past 3 years.
rocksnstumps
5 year old buck +
^^^ Funny, was just going to post that everything is so situational. Some earlier posts on Enterprise and now another one. My situation is this might be better for more vigorous rootstocks and better soils. Had two smallish apples between two trees over 7th leaf on likely M7 roots. Actually that was summer before, late frost this year. Sandyish soil on a hillside probably not helping. However crabapples, several listed above in same general area produce well and consistent. Crabs kick butt over the semi dwarf homeowner oriented trees. One that does fair however is honey gold. Does have flyspeck and sooty blotch by me
Perhaps the reason you have all that sooty blotch and flyspeck on your Honeygolds is that the prevailing wind direction carries it from my Honeygolds to yours. Mine are gray apples that turn out to be yellow after wiping them off. I have no complaints about Honeygold vigor and the deer have no complaints about the sooty blotch. They are win-win trees for me too.
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KickapooKid#1
5 year old buck +
I think half the reason I like Enterprise is the raccoons and bugs seem to leave them alone for the most part in the area. Another thing is my 2 cortland trees on Ant. planted in 2010 have strong crops every year but rarely have and apple make it past August 1 from the raccoons. The 2 Cortlands have held up in structure very well from the abuse compared to some of my other trees.
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
Bill, you should try a Summer Champion Apple. That variety is one of the few well known cultivars that I'm aware of which originated in Texas. It came from a town called Weatherford in 1923. It was originally named Kincaid, later known as Holland, and then Stark Brothers started selling it and changed the name again. It's a good producer here where I live too.
H20fwler
5 year old buck +
I’m an Enterprise fan too.
Mine haven’t fruited much yet but they are great growers and have about the perfect apple tree shape with just minimal pruning. They just naturally scaffold just right. Also good DR.
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