growing orchard

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Brewpastor

Brewpastor

Beer, not rocket chemistry
Joined
Feb 16, 2006
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Corrales, New Mexico
I continue to plant new trees/varieties as I come across them. So far my orchard includes:

Ashmead’s Kernal, Golden Russet, Wickson Crab, Giant Russian, Muscat de Barney, Yarlington Mill, Cortland, Nehou, Honeycrip, Braeburn, Medaille d’Or, Black Oxford

I also have pears, cherries, apricots, plums and peaches. But its the apples I am really interested in.
 
Are there a lot of differences between the cider you can make with these different varieties?
 
Some of these are dessert apples, but others are bitter, bitter-sweet, or sharp apples that are blended to make a cider. Think of different apples you eat. Granny Smiths are really sharp and tart, Honeycrisps are tart but with a nice sweetness, crab apples are just plain bitter. You blend to get a balance of flavors and mouthfeel - basically.
 
You have a honeycrisp tree? That's sweet... Where did you get it? I have heard that the seeds of the apples themselves will only grow a hybrid of honeycrisp with whatever it was pollinated with. Those are the most delicious apples in the world... And invented where I went to school!
 
I picked it up at a local nursery - out here in New Mexico. I assume you can get them in Minnesota. I would check with the folks at the nursery the University runs outside of Minneapolis.
 
That's a good idea. I think I have friends who are in the agriculture program there and they can hook me up haha
 
That's cool! There are a lot of orchards where I live, I'll definitely try to make some cider this summer. Not enough space to grow them myself however, maybe someday!
 
To really set your cider off try a winesap apple. I pick mine just after a good frost and they are full of sweet flavorful juice.
 
here is another cool resource:
http://www.nationalfruitcollection.org.uk/search.php
it's the uk national fruit collection website, you can search for apple varieties and it has lots of info on them- origin, synonyms, flowering and fruit times (for england) etc. i *think* this is the one i saw on a recent bbc foody show on apples; if so then you can order cuttings of every variety they have in the collection, but i didn't see the option on the site so maybe i'm wrong, and who knows if they will ship overseas, but it's still a nice database
 
I too am building a mini orchard. Have about 10 apple trees on one plot right now, 4 are mature, and several are 3-5 years old (have a huge fully mature pear tree too).

I just planted 22 apple trees and two pear trees on a new plot this spring, some of which were english varieties. Such as; yarlington mill, kingston black frequin rouge, bulmers norman roxbury russet, coxs orange pippin. I also grabbed american dessert apples including honeycrisp, northern spy, fuiji, goldrush and a few others. Can't wait until in about 5 years I start getting some real production from those trees. All on semidwarfing rootstock.

If you are looking for heirloom varieties, check out cummins nursery in ithaca NY - they ship all over the states, and maybe internationally, but not sure on that.
 
I just got my order for the spring, so my "orchard" is now done. Golden Russett, Roxburry Rusette, calville blanc, kingston black and a Rutland (ie, the tree I'm growing from seed, if the dang thing ever starts growing fast enough for me to believe it will EVER produce fruit). For eating apples I planted some of these... http://www.millernurseries.com/cart.php?m=product_list&c=19 They were just too funky for me to pass up.
So far, none of my grafts are growing, but I am still hopeful they will. I know of two crabs on unknown (and unoccupied or even un-housed) property that I might top off a try grafting them next year if any of my grafts take this year (and if the crabs they produce are not worth using) For these, I'm thinking more of antique eating apples as they are not on my property and therefore feel a responsibility to let everyone enjoy them.
 
sashurlow said:
I just got my order for the spring, so my "orchard" is now done. Golden Russett, Roxburry Rusette, calville blanc, kingston black and a Rutland (ie, the tree I'm growing from seed, if the dang thing ever starts growing fast enough for me to believe it will EVER produce fruit). For eating apples I planted some of these... http://www.millernurseries.com/cart.php?m=product_list&c=19 They were just too funky for me to pass up.
So far, none of my grafts are growing, but I am still hopeful they will. I know of two crabs on unknown (and unoccupied or even un-housed) property that I might top off a try grafting them next year if any of my grafts take this year (and if the crabs they produce are not worth using) For these, I'm thinking more of antique eating apples as they are not on my property and therefore feel a responsibility to let everyone enjoy them.
Click to expand...

My hope is, when the KB's and YM's come in, to start grafting. We will see how well the varieties do first! Looks like Miller updated their website.
 
I am hoping to graft as well. There are some old orchards in Corrales, were I live. I would like to graft some of the "unique" trees we have around. One friend has a bunch of trees his granddad planted, but the varieties are a bit hazy.
 

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