Mine still hanging

[paleopoint]

"Where did you order these seedling pear trees from??"

Ah, I didn't.
Didn't order 'em.

Here's the tale: An old farmhouse several miles away has two old pear trees. I admired them for 20+ years. (annually prolific, and hang late) Current owner knew nothing about 'em. I talked to members of the original family who built it back in the late 1800's. They had no knowledge. So, I hired a professional grafter to clone 'em. He did and those trees are doing fine. Produce fruit like the parent.
But, out of curiosity I took seeds and propagated them. They showed real vigor....grew fast. And then about 7 or 8 years after seed.....they began to produce these .50-cent fruits. And that was a moment. An 'aha' moment.

Since then I have propagated many from one of those ancient pears (the other simply doesn't grow as well, or produce as prolifically).

I have four in the nursery now. From 2022 seed. They will likely be my last. I am now concerned that I have too many. Too concentrated.

 

[paleopoint]

OK, one more story about this stuff.
Happened last night (and this morning)

I mentioned my 'Kieffer' pears....a variety I am a great fan of.

Well, last night as I walked to my hunting stand I noticed that yesterday morning's rain/hail storm and its gusty winds had caused one of my last bearing Kieffers to drop a lot of pears. Maybe 40+ ?

I thought as I walked by that I'd come out on Tuesday morning and pick up a dozen or so for my breakfast smoothies.

So this morning.....I drove out in my Polaris Ranger with a small bucket.

And there wasn't one pear left on the ground. Every single one had been consumed by deer last night.

You snooze, you lose.

ps....and Kieffers produce a big honkin' pear. Those animals ate a LOT of fruit last night.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

My 2-cents, from Michigan south-central farm country, USDA zone 5b.

Goldrush are still holding well.....as they have every year that they've been producing. Clearly, one of my better 'late-hangers'. But what does drop is promptly eaten up by morning.
Libery has been gone for about 10-days to 2 weeks.
Pristine.....never (ever) has gotten beyond the racoons of September.
Enterprise too....(and Williams Pride, and Florina Querina). Racoons, or 'Trash Pandas" are a problem despite trapping 35+ every year.
Galarina....still holding fruit.
Redfield ----has a few apples still on. Last year they hung until about December 1st.
Golden Delicious ......all down a couple of weeks ago.
Sundance ----which is new for me and just beginning to produce, has a couple of apples still up.
King David....same as above, with Sundance.
Dolgo.....has quite a few 'mummies' still holding on. That tree is a deer magnet in September and is my first 'camera trap' location on Septembr 1st. But most fruit is gone by October 1st.
Kieffer Pears...which I have over a dozen, with probably 8 done for the year, all dropped. But I still have a handful still holding those big fruits.

My 'heirlooms'....(or, my 'VNS' trees, wink) I have a number of trees that I grafted from local trees that I admired for their consistency, persistency, and productivity....apples, crabapples, and pears.
I have some seedling pears that are my "habitat home run"......produce a prolific crop of pears the size of a .50-cent piece every year, and hang late, real late......but drop periodically enough to keep the trees actively visited.
I have seedling crabs ...several parents....that are all beginning to produce prolifically and hang real late.....December dropping (and by Feb. 1 .....most all fruit has dropped.)


Lastly, my English Oaks. First, virtually all acorns have dropped at least 10-days ago (and it was a bountiful year).....but what is also very satisfying about my EO's is that they are the 'Green Giants' of my woodlots right now. They are still fully loaded with leaves. Green leaves. They give a very satisfying appearance to woods that are now trending pretty bare and pretty brown. MY EO's are big enough, and leaf cover dense enough.....that I could easily envision putting up a ladder stand in any number of them.....and be very well hidden by the canopy.

OK, that's it from Z5b.

Great info, Paleopoint!! On-the-ground experience. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Teeder]

My English oaks are just wrapping up. Tree 2 lost its last nuts in the wind we had the past couple of days. Tree 1 still has some hanging. They started dropping Sept 20th. That's 1-1/2 months of deer activity! Tree 1 averages about 2 weeks later than #2.

 

[Duck Creek]

I picked the last Advent pear which was still hanging today. First crop. It was very good. Crisp pear. Zone 5.

 

[H20fwler]

Curious to hear about bonkers too. Even Liberty for that matter. Having trouble finding lot of varieties we like at a orchard.

Wife and mother in law wanted a macoun. Wished I planted that NY 414-1 instead.

You are one of the only people I’ve seen talk about NY-414
I put one in from Cummins nine years ago, it started producing fruit in the last couple of years. Very good eating apple and good DR.

 

[R.E. Gould]

You ever taste a Bonkers?? We have one Bonkers tree at camp. I haven't tried it yet. I got it from SLN on Antonovka roots. Woody tree.

I planted Bonkers in 3B and it did great over the summer then appeared to get winter killed.

 

[bigboreblr]

Was tempted to plant a NY 414-1 and tell them it was a macoun. But, they'd probably know the difference. Heck I got almost 30 trees at home, they can have one or two they like. The other one they like is saturn peach. Pretty sure kerr and sundance will be well liked.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

I planted Bonkers in 3B and it did great over the summer then appeared to get winter killed.

Sorry to hear that R.E. We only have that one Bonkers at camp, and it's done well for us. What roots was it on??

 

[bigboreblr]

Sorry to hear that R.E. We only have that one Bonkers at camp, and it's done well for us. What roots was it on??

Wonder if winter kills is more susceptible the first year you graft? Was probably that polar vortex last February. Was very susprised to see 30-06 and droptine on anty planted in December 2022 make it to 2023. Was about -38 at the stillwater weather station.

 

[TenPoint]

Still holding in zone 4.

Kerr

Golden Hornet

Unknown

Violi’s Hanging

All-Winter Hangover

Enterprise

Black Oxford

Winter Wildlife

 

[H20fwler]

Checked this one out just now. Absolutely loaded, it’s on an old farmstead that a guy I graduated HS owns.
I cut a few scions off it two years ago, one took good. Going to cut more and graft more. It holds deep into January I don’t know what kind of apple it is, there are a dozen other big old apple trees there all bare now. Trees get zero pruning spraying or attention.
This one screams gotta have!

 

[g squared 23]

Only thing left were pink lady. Delicious right off the tree.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Only thing left were pink lady. Delicious right off the tree.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Nice!! Pink Ladies are a really great eating apple. Good for adding to sauce too. Hard, crisp, late apple.

 

[gunfun13]

30-06 is drawing deer still.

Droptine to far left is still holding alot.

10 point in middle has been done for a couple weeks.

 

[Charles Clear]

30-06 is drawing deer still.

Droptine to far left is still holding alot.

10 point in middle has been done for a couple weeks.

View attachment 59742

That is an awesome picture!

 

[H20fwler]

A couple more I’ve been watching for a few years at another spot that are at an old farmhouse around the corner from the Big Woods. These are more biannual, I tried to graft a couple scions off the yellow one a couple years ago but they didn’t take.
They are still holding great, both were loaded this year. There are quite a few old overgrown apple trees in this orchard, these two peak my interest.
I’m going to have to get some M111 rootstock and do some grafting next spring!

As of today;

 

[PoorSand]

Photo taken today of a seed-grown apple tree my son planted 21 years ago. I’ve been tracking its blossom timing for several years now. It’s always been the last tree to blossom in spring, typically a week later than my Red Delicious trees, and has beat late frosts every time. The apples have almost no taste and they get sooty blotch, but the deer like them.

 

[PoorSand]

One of my Honeycrisp trees today.

 

[PoorSand]

Honeygold today.