The adaptable apple. (In Profile).Come back, Johnny Appleseed Johnny Appleseed: see Chapman, John. Johnny Appleseed See Chapman, John. . Much as we all love apples, people just don't plant apple trees in their yards as often as they did a few generations back. While we can now buy a fair number of varieties in the grocery store all year round, none taste as good as one that's homegrown home·grown adj. 1. Raised or grown at home. 2. Originating in or characteristic of a locality: "Rock is homegrown music in the United States, evolved from blues and country and Tin Pan Alley" . Millions of Americans plant tomatoes each year for the same reason: better texture and better flavor. It's interesting that two dwarf apple trees will take up about the same amount of room in the yard as two tomato plants, take about the same time to care for. and will produce a similar number of fruits per plant. Yet seldom is an apple tree included in the landscape design of any new home. One problem might be that most of us remember the enormous amount of work it took to care for the huge old apple tree in grandma's backyard. While you harvested a ton of apples, you still ended up with lots rotting on the ground, attracting yellow jackets and making a mess. And these days few people want to contend with the worry and trouble of having to spray pesticides repeatedly on a tree. But what folks today might not realize is that those problems have either been eliminated or at least greatly minimized. It is not difficult to grow apples in your backyard, and you don't need much space to grow them. SMALL IS IN While standard-sized apple trees can grow to 20 feet high and 15 feet wide, the dwarf and mini-dwarf trees available today grow to be only 6 to 8 feet tall and may be 2 or 3 feet wide. Any variety of apple can be grafted onto a dwarf root stock. And that dwarf tree dwarf tree, in horticultural practice, a tree artificially kept to a smaller size than is normal for average members of the species. This is usually accomplished either by limiting its root space and food and by careful pruning or by grafting it on the rootstock of a is much easier to care for in terms of pruning pruning, the horticultural practice of cutting away an unwanted, unnecessary, or undesirable plant part, used most often on trees, shrubs, hedges, and woody vines. time, spraying time, fertilizing, and watering. Fruit production on a dwarf tree is much more within human scale, in my view. A mature dwarf tree will give you 20 to 30 apples annually. If you had three or four varieties, you would be harvesting at least 100 fresh, tasty apples--more than most of us eat in a year! Keeping it small, espalier espalier (ĕspăl`yər), trellis or lattice used in horticulture for training a tree or vine flat against a wall, either for ornament or to fit it into a small space, allowing it to get a maximum of air and sun and bringing the fruit within is a pruning technique that allows you to prune prune, popular name for a dried plum. Fruits of the many varieties of Prunus domestica, which are firm-fleshed and dry easily without removal of the stone, are gathered after falling from the tree, dipped in lye solution to prevent fermentation, dried in the and train dwarf apple trees to grow in attractive patterns flat up against a wall or a fence. There's a double benefit: a decorative plant for the home landscape that produces delicious fruit. I had always thought that such a project would be difficult and complicated. But once I read up on the subject I learned it's no big deal to create an espaliered apple orchard. Even I could do it, and I did. I planted a 25-foot row of 12 different varieties of dwarf apple trees attached to a fence made of wire secured to 4-by-4 posts. The 12 trees were planted at roughly a 45-degree angle spaced two feet apart down the fence. Such a mini-orchard looks beautiful and provides between 200 and 300 apples to eat fresh or to use in apple pies and apple sauce from mid-August through October and eating apples and some pies through February. My espaliered orchard had two early varieties, two mid-season varieties, two late-season varieties, four storage apples, and two more just for fun; all taking up only 25 feet of space. There are lots of easy-to-follow books on espalier, and there is much available on the web. It takes two or three years to begin to have a pretty display along with some fruit, with full production coming in four to five years. Once you know what you are doing, you can prune 12 dwarf espaliered trees in an hour or maybe two each year. If you don't have the space or sufficient light for even one apple tree, don't despair. Consider "foster parenting" a tree. Wherever apples grow in this country you can find a home in your town or suburb with a huge overgrown overgrown said of a part that has not been kept trimmed. overgrown hoof overgrown hooves put unusual stresses on bones and tendons and allow for distortion of the wall and sole. apple tree in the backyard that has not been cared for in many years. Go to the owner and offer to take over the care of the tree for half the harvest, which could be more than 10 bushels of apples, enough to think about making cider. Renovating an old untended apple tree takes about three years of careful and proper pruning. Done properly, it can bring a 100-year-old tree back into very respectable production. Be sure you check some references about the procedures for pruning overgrown and ancient apple trees. It can be very satisfying to bring an old tree back, and you can he sure the tree's owner will be delighted with the deal. A MATTER OF TASTE Choosing an apple tree from the hundreds of choices can be a bit daunting daunt tr.v. daunt·ed, daunt·ing, daunts To abate the courage of; discourage. See Synonyms at dismay. [Middle English daunten, from Old French danter, from Latin , so make sure you know the basics first. You'll need two different varieties of apple trees to get proper pollination pollination, transfer of pollen from the male reproductive organ (stamen or staminate cone) to the female reproductive organ (pistil or pistillate cone) of the same or of another flower or cone. for each one. If your neighbor has an apple tree, you can get by with buying just one of a different variety. If you're going the dwarf route, two or even four trees are attractive because you get good pollination and can choose varieties that will stagger your harvest time Noun 1. harvest time - the season for gathering crops harvest farming, husbandry, agriculture - the practice of cultivating the land or raising stock . Early apples will ripen rip·en tr. & intr.v. rip·ened, rip·en·ing, rip·ens To make or become ripe or riper; mature. See Synonyms at mature. rip as early as in August and late apples can go into October or even November before they are ready to pick. Another issue is a particular variety's vulnerability to common diseases such as scab or fire blight. Over the past 20 years a fair number of very disease-resistant varieties have been developed, reducing greatly the amount of pesticide spraying needed to have healthy trees and good fruit. At the same time, a number of neat products have been developed to reduce or even eliminate the need to spray for insect damage. Check out gardening supply catalogs or online sites for examples of these new tools and products. Anymore, deer and squirrels are more of a problem for home apple trees than insects and disease, and you can even protect against those critters if you know what you're doing. The final and most important issue you'll want to address before apple tree shopping is taste and texture. Years ago we threw an apple-tasting party with 12 different varieties of apples from a company that sells more than 150 varieties to taste and enjoy via mail order. No two of our 15 guests could agree on the "best" three varieties; everyone had a slightly different preference for taste, tartness, texture, and color. The lesson learned: Taste before you plant. Look for apple sellers online, bit the grocery store, or go to two or three local fruit stands or orchards and taste everything they sell. Here are some of my favorites and some varieties I know are easy to care for. Choose wisely and you'll enjoy fresh apples from the backyard for many decades to come. * Redfree. One of the best eating early apples, Redfree should be enjoyed soon after it ripens because it has a short shelf-life. Redfree is immune to apple scab apple scab Disease of apple trees caused by the fungus Venturia inaequalis, producing dark blotches or lesions on the leaves, fruit, and sometimes young twigs. Affected plants may drop their fruit prematurely, resulting in potentially high crop losses. and cedar apple rust and is moderately resistant to fire blight and powdery pow·der·y adj. 1. Composed of or similar to powder. 2. Dusted or covered with or as if with powder. 3. Easily made into powder; friable. Adj. 1. mildew mildew, name for certain fungi and protists, for the diseases they cause in various crops, and for the discoloration (and sometimes the weakening and disintegration) they cause in such materials as leather, fabrics, and paper. . * Liberty. An early- to mid-season variety available in early September, Liberty is resistant to the "big four" diseases: apple scab, cedar apple rust, fire blight, and powdery mildew. The medium-sized, round fruit has red stripes with greenish undercolor and the flesh is nearly white and very crisp. Liberty can be eaten fresh or used for cooking (sauces, pies, baking) or freezing. It can be stored from three to six months; the flavor intensifies in storage. * Jonafree. This attractive, glossy red apple has some resistance to diseases such as apple scab, cedar apple rust, and fire blight. Mostly used as a fresh eating apple, Jonafree's flavor is like Jonathan but slightly less acidic and mildly tart. Ripens mid-season. * Empire. A cross between McIntosh and Red Delicious Noun 1. Red Delicious - a sweet eating apple with bright red skin; most widely grown apple worldwide Delicious - variety of sweet eating apples , Empire takes on the best characteristics of both. Some claim its flavor improves during storage. Empire ripens in midseason. It is not particularly disease-resistant so will need some spraying to prevent problems. * Enterprise. Crisp Enterprise has creamy flesh, medium-fine texture, a spicy aroma, and mild tartness. It's extremely resistant to apple scab, cedar apple rust, and fire blight and moderately resistant to powdery mildew. Enterprise ripens in mid-October and keeps for five to six months if refrigerated re·frig·er·ate tr.v. re·frig·er·at·ed, re·frig·er·at·ing, re·frig·er·ates 1. To cool or chill (a substance). 2. To preserve (food) by chilling. . * Honeycrisp. This extremely crisp, juicy, sweet apple has a rich flavor that has made it No. 1 in taste panels. The fruit is mostly orange-red with a yellow background. Honeycrisp blooms mid-season and is moderately resistant to apple scab and fire blight. The fruit has a two-week harvest window and stores well. * Macoun. My most favorite apple of all time has a snow-white flesh and is supercrisp and juicy. Its honey sweetness makes up for the mild flavor. Great for eating fresh and for snacks, salads, and fruit cups, it also makes good applesauce. Unfortunately, Macoun is a poor keeper; it gets soft and loses flavor in storage. Macoun ripens in mid- to late season. RELATED ARTICLE: THE NATIONAL CHAMP Species: Malus sylvestris Malus sylvestris the common apple. The fruit can be eaten in sufficient amounts to cause carbohydrate engorgement. The pips contain sufficient cyanogenetic glycoside to cause cyanide poisoning if they were eaten in quantity. Called also M. pumila, Pyrus malus. Location: Bedford, New Hampshire Bedford, founded in 1750, is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2000 census, it had a population of 18,274. A suburb of Manchester, Bedford has one of the highest average personal incomes in the state[1]. Circumference at 4.5 feet: 183 in. Height: 44 feet Crown spread: 49 feet Total points: 239 Nominator: J. Beaudet, R. Pichette, C. Mower mower, farm machine used for cutting grasses and other hay crops. Mowers, drawn by or attached to tractors, or self-propelled, have superseded scythes. The mower is essentially an adaptation of the much earlier reaper. The first commercial mower was patented in 1847. The National Register of Big Trees The National Register of Big Trees is a list of the largest living specimens of each tree variety found in the continental United States. A tree on this list is often called a National Champion Tree. is sponsored by The Davey Tree Expert Company. "Yardening" expert Jeff Ball Jeff Ball may refer to:
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