2023 Scion Exchange

AvidSlacker

A good 3 year old buck
(It looks like no one has yet started the 2023 scion exchange thread, so I am doing it now.)

Having now tried two crops from my Barbara's Blush (WS8-10) American persimmon, I have decided I don't love its flavor -- it's too intense for me, with some unusual (to me) flavors I can't readily pinpoint (caramel? vanilla?). Perhaps I am just used to Asian persimmons, the only ones I ate before. So, I am planning to chop the Barbara's Blush down and graft onto its stump another variety. Since Barbara's Blush has very good reviews on the Internet, I am afraid to try another American variety thinking I may not like them either (and this would probably be the last time to try something on this rootstock as it's becoming too thick). But I am in zone 5b (~20 miles South-East of Cleveland), so I can't grow Asian varieties. So, I am thinking about Kassandra (Cassandra?) Hybrid, which is listed for 5B and is supposed to ripen mid-season (which I figure would be useful for my area with shortened growing season).

Do you guys think Cassandra would be a good candidate for me or you have other suggestions?
Does anyone have Cassandra scion wood to share? Ideally I'd like three sticks because my rootstock is pretty thick and I am thinking to graft three sticks around the perimeter to see which one takes.
From my side, I'd be happy to send virtually any quantity of Barbara's Blush sticks since I will be cutting it down. You could see its picture I posted at the last year's scion exchange thread (reproduced here, along with a fruit closeup). It's very productive and the fruit is a decent size for an American persimmon. I just don't love the taste. And be aware that the branches that have lots of fruit do droop a lot (you'll see that in the photo).

Thanks and regards!
 

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I would like as many Asian pears as I can get, for my wild Callery top working project.
 
I got a itching for those all winter hanger, or winter wildlife crab. Little yellow guys. Would also be glad to get some sort of crabapple or late dropping applewith very agrressive bark. I got snowshoe hares and some winters up to 4-5ft of snow. Looking to get Freedom too.
 
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(It looks like no one has yet started the 2023 scion exchange thread, so I am doing it now.)

Having now tried two crops from my Barbara's Blush (WS8-10) American persimmon, I have decided I don't love its flavor -- it's too intense for me, with some unusual (to me) flavors I can't readily pinpoint (caramel? vanilla?). Perhaps I am just used to Asian persimmons, the only ones I ate before. So, I am planning to chop the Barbara's Blush down and graft onto its stump another variety. Since Barbara's Blush has very good reviews on the Internet, I am afraid to try another American variety thinking I may not like them either (and this would probably be the last time to try something on this rootstock as it's becoming too thick). But I am in zone 5b (~20 miles South-East of Cleveland), so I can't grow Asian varieties. So, I am thinking about Kassandra (Cassandra?) Hybrid, which is listed for 5B and is supposed to ripen mid-season (which I figure would be useful for my area with shortened growing season).

Do you guys think Cassandra would be a good candidate for me or you have other suggestions?
Does anyone have Cassandra scion wood to share? Ideally I'd like three sticks because my rootstock is pretty thick and I am thinking to graft three sticks around the perimeter to see which one takes.
From my side, I'd be happy to send virtually any quantity of Barbara's Blush sticks since I will be cutting it down. You could see its picture I posted at the last year's scion exchange thread (reproduced here, along with a fruit closeup). It's very productive and the fruit is a decent size for an American persimmon. I just don't love the taste. And be aware that the branches that have lots of fruit do droop a lot (you'll see that in the photo).

Thanks and regards!
Sorry to hear you haven't liked your Barbara Blush persimmon. I believe I got BB and Zima Khurma from you in 2021. Mine haven't yet fruited but are doing well. I tried Early Golden, my first persimmon, this year from a very small tree. It was a strong cinnamon sugar taste with something else as an aftertaste (perhaps some astringency). It was a bit intense. I wouldn't recommend that variety in your case. I've heard that Prok is a very mellow-flavored American persimmon. I grafted that last year. I'm not sure how much growth I got. I could check it out if I get a chance to take a trip to my property. I've read Kassandra is very sweet, so it sounds like it's similar to an Asian. I'm not sure if it would be reliably hardy for you. Unfortunately, I don't have that variety (but would like to get it at some point).
 
I'm planning to have scions available to ship the week of March 20th. The best non-crab apple tree I have for deer is a tree I grafted in ’99 that has been my sole people apple tree to have beaten a late frost every time, though with a reduced crop. I believe that it is either a Red Delicious variant or the graft failed without me noticing and it is a Red Delicious seedling. The fruit looks and tastes like Red Delicious to me, but the tree form is spreading rather than upright and it has a more extended bloom season than my other Red Delicious trees. The fruit typically trickle drops from late October through late November. If anybody wants some scions from it, I am looking for Sundance in exchange.

Wow! That went fast. I'm not sure if the tree can support any more scion requests than I received already this morning.
 
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Sorry to hear you haven't liked your Barbara Blush persimmon. I believe I got BB and Zima Khurma from you in 2021. Mine haven't yet fruited but are doing well. I tried Early Golden, my first persimmon, this year from a very small tree. It was a strong cinnamon sugar taste with something else as an aftertaste (perhaps some astringency). It was a bit intense. I wouldn't recommend that variety in your case. I've heard that Prok is a very mellow-flavored American persimmon. I grafted that last year. I'm not sure how much growth I got. I could check it out if I get a chance to take a trip to my property. I've read Kassandra is very sweet, so it sounds like it's similar to an Asian. I'm not sure if it would be reliably hardy for you. Unfortunately, I don't have that variety (but would like to get it at some point).

Thanks for sharing tasting notes of Early Golden. This does sound similar to Barbara's Blush and confirms my suspicion that I just won't like an American variety. By the way, I also had two seasons of Khurma Zima, and I liked it much better! It has no aftertaste you mention. But it does seem marginal for my climate. It does not get any frost damage but the first year the fruit could not fully ripen and had some residual astringency. This year I only got six fruits from it (the rest dropped off through the summer for some reason) but they were fully ripe and very delicious. My wife found the skin to be a bit too tough and leathery, but I thought they were close to perfect. Yes, I've heard of Prok being mellow (along with Celebrity), that's another possibility, but right now I am leaning towards a hybrid that would ripen earlier than Khurma Zima. In addition to Kassandra, I stumbled upon a "Dar Sofiyivky", also from Ukraine, with very good description. But I found only one mention that it's hardy to zone 5B in someone's blog. Does anyone know anything about this one?
 
I'm planning to have scions available to ship the week of March 20th. The best non-crab apple tree I have for deer is a tree I grafted in ’99 that has been my sole people apple tree to have beaten a late frost every time, though with a reduced crop. I believe that it is either a Red Delicious variant or the graft failed without me noticing and it is a Red Delicious seedling. The fruit looks and tastes like Red Delicious to me, but the tree form is spreading rather than upright and it has a more extended bloom season than my other Red Delicious trees. The fruit typically trickle drops from late October through late November. If anybody wants some scions from it, I am looking for Sundance in exchange.
Have plenty of sundance, I would be happy to trade. Send a PM with a shipping address, I usually cut third week of Feb.
 
- it's too intense for me, with some unusual (to me) flavors I can't readily pinpoint (caramel? vanilla?).

I read recently that American persimmons lend themselves more to custards and puddings as opposed to Asian persimmons that are better for eating fresh. Maybe make a persimmon custard and see if the flavor is expressed better that way?
 
I am looking for;
Apple - Pristine
Big Dog
Redfield - Unless it gets CAR? I cant find anywhere it says it is resistant or susceptible
Crossbow
Bluehill Varieties

Pear - Gilmer Christmas
Korean Giant/Olympic
Dr Deer Pear
Ayers

I have;
Apple
30-06
Droptine
10-point
Sundance
golden russet
sweet16
Arkansas black
liberty
empire
chestnut
Williams pride
Black Oxford
May only have a stick or 2 of the varieties listed below
Kerr
Ides of March
All winter Hangover
winter wildlife
Yates
Wickson
Franklin
Frostbite



Pear;
Kieffer
Malus
Sweet Advent
Ms. Laneen
Gate
 
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Redfield - Unless it gets CAR? I cant find anywhere it says it is resistant or susceptible

I skipped some CAR sprays on Redfield, and it did indeed get CAR pretty bad.
 
I am looking for;
Apple - Pristine
Big Dog
Redfield - Unless it gets CAR? I cant find anywhere it says it is resistant or susceptible
Crossbow
Bluehill Varieties

Pear - Gilmer Christmas
Korean Giant/Olympic
Dr Deer Pear
Ayers

I have;
Apple
30-06
Droptine
10-point
Sundance
golden russet
sweet16
Arkansas black
liberty
empire
chestnut
Williams pride
Black Oxford
May only have a stick or 2 of the varieties listed below
Kerr
Ides of March
All winter Hangover
winter wildlife
Yates
Wickson
Franklin



Pear;
Kieffer
Malus
Sweet Advent
Ms. Laneen
Gate
I have Pristine, Redfield, and Ayers. Redfield hasn't been too bad with CAR, compared to some, I would still try it.
 
This is not in response to anyone's postings. It is just my observation. I’m grateful for every scion I have received. I guess that just the older I get, the more ways I have seen scion ends sealed before shipping. Scions that I have received that simply had the cut ends dipped in simple candle wax right after cutting arrived here just fine. More elaborate wax sealing methods were fine too, and I have done them myself, but regular candle wax has been good enough here.
 
Guy from whitetail crabs gave me scions in my late nov tree order. I dipped them in wax. They're in the fridge. You guys trust them?
 
Looking for Harvest Queen pear if anyone has it. Will buy or trade.
 
I read recently that American persimmons lend themselves more to custards and puddings as opposed to Asian persimmons that are better for eating fresh. Maybe make a persimmon custard and see if the flavor is expressed better that way?
We tried to make preserves from Barbara's Blush twice, but even thought the fruits were fully ripe and had no astringency when eating fresh, they developed a very strong astringency after being boiled, to the extent that we had to throw out the resulting goo both times. Don't know, we probably are missing something in the preparation, but we followed Internet recipes to the letter. The second time, I even froze and thawed and then peeled the fruits, to make sure there would be no astringency -- and yet...
 
I am looking for: Apple
Enterprise
Sundance
Black Oxford
Sorry, I don't have anything for exchange (just getting into grafting) I am willing to pay $
 
I am looking for;
Apple - Pristine
Big Dog
Redfield - Unless it gets CAR? I cant find anywhere it says it is resistant or susceptible
Crossbow
Bluehill Varieties

Pear - Gilmer Christmas
Korean Giant/Olympic
Dr Deer Pear
Ayers

I have;
Apple
30-06
Droptine
10-point
Sundance
golden russet
sweet16
Arkansas black
liberty
empire
chestnut
Williams pride
Black Oxford
May only have a stick or 2 of the varieties listed below
Kerr
Ides of March
All winter Hangover
winter wildlife
Yates
Wickson
Franklin
Frostbite



Pear;
Kieffer
Malus
Sweet Advent
Ms. Laneen
Gate
I could use Sundance and Black Oxford sions. I'm sorry, I don't have anything to trade. I don't mind paying $
 
Guy from whitetail crabs gave me scions in my late nov tree order. I dipped them in wax. They're in the fridge. You guys trust them?
if you dont trust them on root stock you can always just give them a try on a branch of an existing tree this spring - I bank extra scion that way all the time... if it takes you can cut take it for bud grafting or scion for next year. Its a long time from nov to this spring I would have my doubts that it would be viable but why waste it.
 
I remember reading a comment from Cliff England (Englands Nursery) stating he has used persimmon scion from 2 years ago to successfully graft trees. I got some last year still in the fridge and they are green. Dipping the ends in wax was a good thing to keep them viable longer. I don't like putting water or a paper towel in the ziploc bag with scions. It seems to mold quicker. Grafting to branches like cavey said is another great idea.
 
Anyone with some good persimmon varieties I could get some scions from?
 
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