Whitetail Crabs DEATH WISH
- Thread starter TonySoprano
- Start date
bigboreblr
5 year old buck +
Theyre sales up this year?
TonySoprano
5 year old buck +
Yes Sir
TonySoprano
5 year old buck +
Terry told me bout the Death Wish tree a month or two ago. When I asked how big they will get this was his reply/
"On the death wish it has genetics to push a very large tree..25 to 30 inch diameter....this year we started grafting onto full size rootstock for Death Wish to complement that. We have a row on 111 this year we are digging.. so will push a big tree but not a full size giant on that rootstock. 25 to 30 feet tall on your 111. So yours will push a large crab on 111 but not HUGE. we budded some other varieties on full size rootstock as well for spring 2026..."
RGrizzzz I'm fine with a 25 to 30 foot tree , don't need a big monster shading out my other trees. Would a full size rootsock make for a better tree ?.
RGrizzzz
Administrator
It depends on how many and where you are planting. If you're planting more trees on tighter spacing, semidwarf is fine. If you're planting a few trees here and there, then go with full sized trees. I'm putting trees in groups of 4-6 in various spots in our woods openings, so I choose full sized trees.
TonySoprano
5 year old buck +
$42.80 shipping for 7 trees wasn't that bad. , four of those trees are in the 4' to 6 ' range.
TonySoprano
5 year old buck +
Sorry for the stupid question. If this Death Wish tree is 25-30 foot tall , how tall would a full size tree be approximately ?
Hoytvectrix
5 year old buck +
Thanks for the heads up. I have been checking Whitetail Crabs everyday this week and have finally been able to get an order in. The last two years I missed it.
TWalter91
5 year old buck +
Yes not bad at all. I already have 18 trees from him so I'm looking at adding some different varieties now. Im interested to see what trees he has on standard rootstock next year. Will definitely buy some more from him then.
TWalter91
5 year old buck +
I would imagine the death wish on standard rootstock would be in the 25-30ft range. I could be wrong though.
TonySoprano
5 year old buck +
This is Terrys own words about this years Death Wish tree, he claims the roots it's on this year will be in the 25-30 ft range.
Is there really any advantages to a tree much bigger than that ?
Terrys quote " "On the death wish it has genetics to push a very large tree..25 to 30 inch diameter....this year we started grafting onto full size rootstock for Death Wish to complement that. We have a row on 111 this year we are digging.. so will push a big tree but not a full size giant on that rootstock. 25 to 30 feet tall on your 111. So yours will push a large crab on 111 but not HUGE. we budded some other varieties on full size rootstock as well for spring 2026..."
bigboreblr
5 year old buck +
Generally an antonovka can make a 25-30ft tree. B118 which he uses most often is a 20-25ft tree. M111 you could say make a 18-22ft tree.
I have heavy clay soil, but great organicmaterial. M111 is about the best rootstock for clay soils. Almost one of the most drought resistant. At home, I try to get M111. At camp up north of old forge, it's zone 3 and sandy soil. I have antonovka and B118 which handle cold better as well as sandy soils.
Also, trees on different rootstock start to make fruit at different ages too. Antonovka is said to take 8-10 years. M111 is more around 6 or 7. This can vary based on alot of things, including what you graft onto them. Crabapples are usually earlier than full sized apples.
While Terry has specialty crabapples, I would not pass up an opportunity to get enterprise or Liberty They drop in the fall liberty and enterprise are about completely disease resistant. Also, at some point you might want some apples for you. Liberty is an october tree, might be good to put close to camp so you can harvest some without distrubing the backwoods.
Some folks prune their mature trees. Can't really do that with a 25ft tree. Trees at home will be well grafted here. Regular pruning can make them a little smaller, but puts out more fruit. I will be trimming these guys down to about 12-14ft tall. I have a 10ft orchard ladder as well as 6ft extended pruning shears.
The typical habitat method on here is to prune the tree into the shape it wants, then more or less let it go. Pruning shaping like 5-7 years here. Then maintenance, removed broken diseased stuff and maybe prune lower stuff a bit.
I have heavy clay soil, but great organicmaterial. M111 is about the best rootstock for clay soils. Almost one of the most drought resistant. At home, I try to get M111. At camp up north of old forge, it's zone 3 and sandy soil. I have antonovka and B118 which handle cold better as well as sandy soils.
Also, trees on different rootstock start to make fruit at different ages too. Antonovka is said to take 8-10 years. M111 is more around 6 or 7. This can vary based on alot of things, including what you graft onto them. Crabapples are usually earlier than full sized apples.
While Terry has specialty crabapples, I would not pass up an opportunity to get enterprise or Liberty They drop in the fall liberty and enterprise are about completely disease resistant. Also, at some point you might want some apples for you. Liberty is an october tree, might be good to put close to camp so you can harvest some without distrubing the backwoods.
Some folks prune their mature trees. Can't really do that with a 25ft tree. Trees at home will be well grafted here. Regular pruning can make them a little smaller, but puts out more fruit. I will be trimming these guys down to about 12-14ft tall. I have a 10ft orchard ladder as well as 6ft extended pruning shears.
The typical habitat method on here is to prune the tree into the shape it wants, then more or less let it go. Pruning shaping like 5-7 years here. Then maintenance, removed broken diseased stuff and maybe prune lower stuff a bit.
bigboreblr
5 year old buck +
I ordered from terry fall of 2022. I asked him to ship them in the fall. I believe he sent them a week after opening of rifle season here in NY. Great time to put trees in. Wish more tree vendors did that, but do get why they don't too.
That is the one big advantage terry's outfit has in my opinion. Those trees get a big head start over spring planted trees. Pretty close to almost a season ahead getting those roots acclimated and growing.
That is the one big advantage terry's outfit has in my opinion. Those trees get a big head start over spring planted trees. Pretty close to almost a season ahead getting those roots acclimated and growing.
TonySoprano
5 year old buck +
That's probably a smart move. Unfortunately I have some prep work to do after this hunting season , cutting a few trees to make room for Terry's trees in spring 2025. So I'll just plant them when he ships them.
