|
Post by benmnwi on Nov 2, 2023 12:32:38 GMT -6
My grafted dolgo also lost all of its fruit in September, but I have a couple of dolgo seedlings that are holding fruit as well. These trees have only fruited for 2 years now, so I'm really curious how long the fruit will hold. One of these trees has fruit that is in the 1 1/2-2" diameter range, which is much bigger than my grafted dolgo. That tree has a light fruit load though, so it is possible the fruit size will drop once the fruit quantity increases. But I think there is also a chance that could be a really nice tree that will keep some of the positive dolgo traits while having larger than average fruit size. I'm starting to think that dolgo seedlings are great trees to have as a backbone of a deer orchard. Get those boys of yours growing some for you (and maybe for other habitat geeks) sheffields.com/seeds/Malus/spWe actually tried growing from seed this year, but some type of rodent ate them all right after they germinated. I need to modify my apple seed planting plan if I'm going to have a better chance this spring. But that does remind me that I probably should have my boys go pick all of the hanging dolgo apples to get the seeds. I have quite a few dolgo seedling apples still hanging, so it is worth a shot.
|
|
|
Post by smsmith on Nov 2, 2023 12:40:57 GMT -6
I planted an old NCR styrofoam flat full of apple, crab, and pear seeds last week. Then I buried it in the garden with window screen under it and over it. Weighted the screen down with some rocks. We'll see what happens come spring.
|
|
|
Post by Sandbur on Nov 2, 2023 13:41:50 GMT -6
I planted an old NCR styrofoam flat full of apple, crab, and pear seeds last week. Then I buried it in the garden with window screen under it and over it. Weighted the screen down with some rocks. We'll see what happens come spring. I planted apple seeds in salavaged pots and buried them to ground level in the garden. Like you, I put 1/4 inch wire mesh, weighed down with rocks, over them. Rodents did ruin plantings from previous years that were not covered. I would also collect seeds from any wild crab that looks deer worthy.
|
|
|
Post by Sandbur on Nov 3, 2023 6:25:22 GMT -6
I walked past my two Dolgo seedlings at the end of my morning walk today. Both are still holding fruit. Dolgo seedling #1 has many dime to nickel size fruit hanging. #2 has only a few (it didn't have many to begin with) quarter size fruit hanging. My grafted Dolgo has been bare since right around mid September. I wonder how closely these two seedlings are actually related to Dolgo. Another article I found from the Alaska fruit growers (ya, I'm bored waiting for firearm opener) dealing with crabapple rootstocks www.apfga.org/ranetka-is-a-ranetka-is-a/After reading that link yesterday, I was thinking about Kerr and Kerr OP seedlings. I guess they could be called ranetka by some cloudy part of the definitions. I might have a Kerr seedling somewhere. I need to check tags some day after hunting season.
|
|
|
Post by smsmith on Nov 3, 2023 6:43:24 GMT -6
I walked past my two Dolgo seedlings at the end of my morning walk today. Both are still holding fruit. Dolgo seedling #1 has many dime to nickel size fruit hanging. #2 has only a few (it didn't have many to begin with) quarter size fruit hanging. My grafted Dolgo has been bare since right around mid September. I wonder how closely these two seedlings are actually related to Dolgo. Another article I found from the Alaska fruit growers (ya, I'm bored waiting for firearm opener) dealing with crabapple rootstocks www.apfga.org/ranetka-is-a-ranetka-is-a/After reading that link yesterday, I was thinking about Kerr and Kerr OP seedlings. I guess they could be called ranetka by some cloudy part of the definitions. I might have a Kerr seedling somewhere. I need to check tags some day after hunting season. Ya, I don't know if Bernie's statement on Ranetka is biologically accurate or not. The whole deal with OP seedlings is so wide open genetically that I really wonder what folks have been planting while thinking they were "Dolgo" "Antonovka" "Ranetka" and/or "Baccata" I think Lawyer Nursery used to be closer to accurate when they sold "Common domestic apple" rootstocks.
|
|
|
Post by Sandbur on Nov 3, 2023 8:16:29 GMT -6
After reading that link yesterday, I was thinking about Kerr and Kerr OP seedlings. I guess they could be called ranetka by some cloudy part of the definitions. I might have a Kerr seedling somewhere. I need to check tags some day after hunting season. Ya, I don't know if Bernie's statement on Ranetka is biologically accurate or not. The whole deal with OP seedlings is so wide open genetically that I really wonder what folks have been planting while thinking they were "Dolgo" "Antonovka" "Ranetka" and/or "Baccata" I think Lawyer Nursery used to be closer to accurate when they sold "Common domestic apple" rootstocks. Maybe that is why slick Charlie’s Antanovka rootstock hasn’t impressed me. There is also something about SLN’s Anty rootstock that I struggle with during the first few years. If I can get them through that two years, they do well. I wonder if Anty on my soils is so slow to establish and maybe slow to harden off before our winters. I just can’t quite figure it out.
|
|
|
Post by smsmith on Nov 3, 2023 8:35:34 GMT -6
Ya, I don't know if Bernie's statement on Ranetka is biologically accurate or not. The whole deal with OP seedlings is so wide open genetically that I really wonder what folks have been planting while thinking they were "Dolgo" "Antonovka" "Ranetka" and/or "Baccata" I think Lawyer Nursery used to be closer to accurate when they sold "Common domestic apple" rootstocks. Maybe that is why slick Charlie’s Antanovka rootstock hasn’t impressed me. There is also something about SLN’s Anty rootstock that I struggle with during the first few years. If I can get them through that two years, they do well. I wonder if Anty on my soils is so slow to establish and maybe slow to harden off before our winters. I just can’t quite figure it out. Calling rootstocks Antonovka is every bit as vague as Dolgo, probably more. Take a look at the number of Antonovkas offered by GRIN. I believe Todd Parlo at Walden Heights was trialing a number of Antonovka cultivars during his cold hardiness trials. Every doggone OP seed from an Antovovka is an individual with its unknown genetics. All these variables among seedling rootstocks is why research on rootstocks has gone towards clonal stock. You get known characteristics, each one isn't a crap shoot.
|
|
|
Post by nhmountains on Nov 3, 2023 15:19:24 GMT -6
A guy with a green thumb could make some bucks pulling seeds out of (free for the picking) dolgo/dolgo seedling fruit and growing them out for a year to sell to the habitat crowd. His name is Art.
|
|
|
Post by Sandbur on Nov 3, 2023 17:31:36 GMT -6
A guy with a green thumb could make some bucks pulling seeds out of (free for the picking) dolgo/dolgo seedling fruit and growing them out for a year to sell to the habitat crowd. His name is Art. I would need help to dig them. Those roots reach a longggg ways down in the garden.
|
|
|
Post by benmnwi on Nov 28, 2023 11:36:26 GMT -6
I was able to find dolgo seedlings for sale at Yellow River Nursery in Marshfield Wisconsin. I haven't heard of them before, but they have a decent selection, and you can purchase them in bundles of 10 ($39.50 per bundle of 10). Minimum order is 20 trees, but they have a pretty nice selection of other trees and shrubs in the same price range so it isn't too tough to find other trees that will get you up to the minimum order quantity.
|
|
|
Post by smsmith on Nov 28, 2023 12:30:18 GMT -6
I was able to find dolgo seedlings for sale at Yellow River Nursery in Marshfield Wisconsin. I haven't heard of them before, but they have a decent selection, and you can purchase them in bundles of 10 ($39.50 per bundle of 10). Minimum order is 20 trees, but they have a pretty nice selection of other trees and shrubs in the same price range so it isn't too tough to find other trees that will get you up to the minimum order quantity. Good on you, way to stick with the searching. Seems like a fair price for nice sized seedlings. If my current apple/crab seedling experiment isn't fruitful for next year, I may go back to ordering some seedling crabs for spring of '25.
|
|
|
Post by benmnwi on Nov 28, 2023 13:11:30 GMT -6
I was able to find dolgo seedlings for sale at Yellow River Nursery in Marshfield Wisconsin. I haven't heard of them before, but they have a decent selection, and you can purchase them in bundles of 10 ($39.50 per bundle of 10). Minimum order is 20 trees, but they have a pretty nice selection of other trees and shrubs in the same price range so it isn't too tough to find other trees that will get you up to the minimum order quantity. Good on you, way to stick with the searching. Seems like a fair price for nice sized seedlings. If my current apple/crab seedling experiment isn't fruitful for next year, I may go back to ordering some seedling crabs for spring of '25. It is odd how difficult it has been to find a dolgo seedling supplier this year. Yellow River said their inventory was low, but they still had some today when I placed my order. I'll likely graft half of them and plant the rest directly at my new place. I've been impressed with how reliable the crops have been on my other dolgo crabapples and they seem to get a lot of attention from deer right around the bow opener.
|
|
|
Post by smsmith on Nov 29, 2023 9:09:13 GMT -6
Good on you, way to stick with the searching. Seems like a fair price for nice sized seedlings. If my current apple/crab seedling experiment isn't fruitful for next year, I may go back to ordering some seedling crabs for spring of '25. It is odd how difficult it has been to find a dolgo seedling supplier this year. Yellow River said their inventory was low, but they still had some today when I placed my order. I'll likely graft half of them and plant the rest directly at my new place. I've been impressed with how reliable the crops have been on my other dolgo crabapples and they seem to get a lot of attention from deer right around the bow opener. For a young guy with a new chunk of ground to design, I think crab and/or apple seedlings are a great way to get soft mast on the ground. I've got deer hitting my wild seedling crabs for drops most every night. Other than a couple varieties (NW Greening, Maya apple, Jonsib), my grafted apples/pears are providing zero food at this point.
|
|
|
Post by benmnwi on Nov 29, 2023 12:16:31 GMT -6
It is odd how difficult it has been to find a dolgo seedling supplier this year. Yellow River said their inventory was low, but they still had some today when I placed my order. I'll likely graft half of them and plant the rest directly at my new place. I've been impressed with how reliable the crops have been on my other dolgo crabapples and they seem to get a lot of attention from deer right around the bow opener. For a young guy with a new chunk of ground to design, I think crab and/or apple seedlings are a great way to get soft mast on the ground. I've got deer hitting my wild seedling crabs for drops most every night. Other than a couple varieties (NW Greening, Maya apple, Jonsib), my grafted apples/pears are providing zero food at this point. I agree and I've been spending a lot of time thinking about how to incorporate apple trees into the new place. I think that in the long term I'm hoping to have an orchard for people to eat, an orchard for a late season deer food source and then a bunch scattered trees in specific locations for hunting purposes. And maybe a row or two of red splendor crabapples for the pheasants and turkeys. I like the varieties that you and Art have found, so they will definitely make their way to my new place. I have a wild crab behind my house that is a solid producer that usually starts dropping in January, so I'll be grafting that variety for use at my new place as well.
|
|