The Blairmont Apple Project

The figs are Rooted!

2025-04-27T18:08:00.002-04:00

Wow. 158 fig starts set up and going. Though I saved 2 of Hative D'Argenteuil to be grafted to SBT figs. Hopefully I can get them done between rain clouds tomorrow.

Fig day tomorrow.

2025-04-26T20:28:00.001-04:00

Have 88 fig cuttings to start. Might as well use kiddie help and finish them out. That will make 158 trees! Mercy! Been outfitting new metal label tags on everything. Probably have another 6 dozen of those to do as well.

Our one lousy apple got a one lousy plum friend...lol....a Marianna.

Short day

2025-04-21T17:57:00.000-04:00

Leg pain cut today short. Still got six apples grafted. Kimrome, Baldwin, Newtown Pippin, Yellow Bellflower, White Winter Pearmain and another.

Still need to finish my Kimromes and and Yellow June and Maiden Blush. But I also need to move on to setting up the fig collection.

Looking for a shady spot as the heat is already wilting plants if you miss a day's watering.

Still looking for propagation fair partners. A lot of interest but no commitments. These Pear and Apple scions are not getting any younger. I may try to hold an event with who I can get at a church function.

Continuing progress

2025-04-15T19:13:00.001-04:00

Finally got in another 2 loads of soil in. Have Plumbago and Celeste figs to root. 64 French and LSU figs to plant. A bevy of Southern and low chill apples to graft. A big mix of Southern pears and fire blight resistant pears also. With a sprinkling of various Asian and oddball pears as well{Pyrus Pyraster, a wild and vigorous disease resistant rootstock}.

Flowering in the Apple trees is off. First was Centurion Crab. Then Pink Lady. And now Yates. Pink Lady has a few apples growing.

It appears one of my trees labelled Dorsett Golden is actually Golden Delicious which was hand written on the reverse side of the tag. It clearly is leafing out very differently then either my other Dorsetts and Anna.

Shockley Apple Concern

2025-04-02T11:58:00.005-04:00

Kind of bummed both of my regular Shockley trees are not doing well. Got a lot of recent die back on the tree the goat broke. And my other tree is looking dry as well.

Of course we also brought in Shockley Grizzle strain. And the scions we very small. So they are in ICU like condition. Watch and wait.

On the flip side the Blairmont is leafing out well. Disharoon , Parks Pippin and 1st of May too.

More things leafing out

2025-04-01T18:20:00.002-04:00

Been checking everybody growing out there. Most of the Blueberries are coming back well after a bad year of rabbit damage.

4 plants are still tiny with little or no leaves though. Yet still alive.

My P.2 rootstock I nervously cut to the ground to stool are finally sending up shoots. Next year I should have a good supply of rootstock to harvest.

Plan on stooling P.18 and M111 as well. The G.257 sample promised by Geneva appears to have got wiped out from budget cutting. As well as our mostly rootstock germplasm from GRIN. Maybe next year. P.14, MM109 and MicroMalus is not available elsewhere.

Rooting by cuttings is going very well with Lord Burghley and Gasconye's Scarlett. Empire and Appletown Wonder also seem positive. I think my Mank's Codlin are not likely to make it. They were quite small.

Two good days for apple grafting

2025-03-29T20:07:00.003-04:00

Finished up grafting some minimalist size scions via whip and tongue today. Hall was particularly annoy as it was a bit woody and wanted to break apart.

At any rate got all the "Root by cuttings " apples going. Appletown Wonder was a disappointment as half of it was dead. I did manage 1 4 inch piece that was still alive.

Also got Empire and Gascone Scarlet done. I fear my Manks Codlin are possibly dead. Despite wrapping and constant hydration they are weak looking.

It is clear 2 rooted as has Lord Burghley.

Kimrome, Etter's Gold , Annie Elizabeth are some others grafted. Most top worked as we await more soil to be picked up.

Lord Burghley

2025-03-23T15:27:00.004-04:00

Is growing from one of the cuttings. I can see at least two thick side root starts of the 3 buds buried. 2 of the 3 above the soil buds can not get more green tipped without leafing. They are literally all green. I peeled the tape off the scion and will move it to a part sun area that I can control watering tightly.

It will be great to try the fruit; but on own roots that will probably be years away. I mainly want vegetative growth for now anyway.

The planted Florahome peaches do not look the best. Definitely tip die off. Weird they greener up the trunks nicely. I guess we will increase watering on them.

Spring doing it's thing

2025-03-20T16:25:00.000-04:00

Waiting for the ketchup to pour from the bottle

2025-03-18T17:35:00.000-04:00

It is that annoying time of year when you see eeks of progress. But it is a while until things are in full swing. I get most annoyed with the non-progress of the supple and quite alive rootstock.

With a small subset of root by cutting test subjects; I will only need about 26 rootstock this year. While only 17 are left from last season. Plus I need another 10 pear rootstock to plant out scions.

Speaking of our Namesake Blairmont; it to is among the lazy that refuses to break bud. Still limber but smaller then most. Need to settle on who we will cross with it soon. Leaning hard toward Pionier this first season.

It too is a late-early season apple. Slightly smaller sweeter fruit. Hope it embues some of it's handsome dark color to the offspring. Both are well thought of dessert types. Pionier seems to be a bit more care free and mild mannered as a grower. With some luck; maybe one of the seeds will better storage times some.

My original thought was to cross any successful offspring with Starr to improve storage and tang factor. But we missed getting it this year; so as an early season apple Mank's Codlin may have to stand in. I shudder thinking though Mank's is yet another care free modest grower. So that might result in a low vigor type where I hoped for something more vigorous. Horse and Starr seem like a better bet for that.

The race for first leafing standard apple

2025-03-13T19:29:00.001-04:00

While Centurion crab took the first apple bloom of the year on March 3rd; I have been waiting for the first standard apple action.

Anna and Dorsett Golden would be odds on favorites; but no. My money was on Yates which greentipped bud on Feb.27th. And now has 6-7 buds that way. But it was not to be. This morning Park's Pippin unleash a nice big king leaf. And this afternoon Pink Lady joined it with a small leafing.

Another surprise is Disharoon. Which suddenly green tipped about a dozen buds.

Been working/adding other things.

2025-03-12T20:39:00.001-04:00

Been planting new pears and plums. Hoped the new Golden and Methley Plums would still bloom while my Mariana was in bloom. Golden just missed it. Maybe they will sync in next year.

So now that we have Bartlett and Moonglow; we have some scions to top work them. Fansil, Warren and Diamond are coming courtesy of Fusion power (poster name} from growing fruit. And a stick of Summer Blood Birne pear is coming on my apple order from Peninsula Fruit Club in the Northwest.

Not much activity on apples other then ordering more grafting tape and picking up 2 more truck loads of biochar soil to build my soil mix from.

Other things included a large patch of potato eyes covered with weathered goat manure/hay. We have 3 long wooden planters awaiting seeds and bulbs. I could not resist a pack of Rhubarb to plant in one.

Been walking the plants journaling progress. Leafing, initial bloom, full and end bloom. Can't wait to get grafting. Though I will likely be short on apple rootstocks. Hate to order just 10 and pay twice that in freight.

I noticed Rural King has all the wrong type of apples for around here{high chill hours}. But their Degroot trees are quite large for just $14.99 each. I may just buy a pair and park a few grafts on them for now.

Starting Root by cutting Apple trees

2025-02-28T14:36:00.000-05:00

Fixed 5 trees in a more sandy version of our potting mix. Carefully selected cut areas. Trimmed bottoms. Sacrificed the two buds to the bottom on each piece. Wet them. Touched dried the sacrificed zone. Dipped them in rooting hormone. Planted in labeled pots and watered.

With any luck we should get 2 Lord Burgleigh and 3 Mank's Codlins. Let us keep the fingers crossed.

Eyeing another order to add Gascoyne's Scarlet, Appleton Wonder and perhaps Empire. With Etter's Gold, Kimrome and Annie Elizabeth coming to fill out the root stock left on hand.

Which should conclude our orders this year. Shockley-Grizzle and Langleigh Delight are still in the fridge.

First Bud break of the collection.

2025-02-17T16:31:00.001-05:00

So I wondered who would take the title as about 4 varieties have big swollen buds. However today Centurion crab decided to grace us with it's bright red flowers. Just beating the scion of Pionier of Romania that is grafted to it. And Anna and Dorsett Golden.

Also made an impulse buy of a Pineapple Guava tree I found for $20. Have no idea which variety it is. Will as the dealer the next sale he shows up at. And probably will buy another. Good looking bushes they say do well here.

New Additions time of year.

2025-02-14T17:15:00.001-05:00

New plants and scions arrive!

Temperate Orchard Conservancy had 4 of the 6 apples I ordered. The scion wood was very good quality. But some was small; and they added an extra piece to make up for it.

Here I got Mank's Codlin, Lanleigh Delight, Lord Burghley and Shockley-Grizzle strain.

In a compulsion buy I spied a great looking Dorsett Golden in breaking leaf. Being pleased with my other Dorsett's I could not resist the $21 price.

Later the wife spotted some nice bare root Florida King Peach tree budded like crazy. Bought a pair.

A few days later we were in a big box hardware place. Getting the vapors from the crazy prices. $80 for fruit trees? No thanks. yet they had Strawberry pints at $2 Bought 6. Only to find we need another 6 for the strawberry pot we have.

Then we noticed Pear trees. All with the high price. Then I found a well leafed out Bartlett Pear. Likely shipped there by accident as we rarely get the 800 chill hours Bartlett needs. It was $30 so we bought it.

The poor tree will get top worked over with Leconte and Sand Pear scions. Both only need 250-350 chill hours.

I am so tempted with Lord Burghley and Mank's Codlin. Both are classic "roots by cutting" apple trees. Lord Burghley being very easy to root they claim. But I think I will graft them just to be safe and try it after they get established.

Been walking the trees to document leaf breaking and flowering. A good amount have swollen buds. Centurion Crab is just on the cusp of breaking out.

Apple Talk : King Solomon

2025-01-29T07:24:00.000-05:00

Today's apple is one of the old Senior Citizens of Georgia bred apples. Often overlooked. Yet a proven reliable croppers. Like the other senior citizens; it predates the Civil war. Some sources reference a Kentucky Nursery selling it in 1870. But I have found 3 older catalog references, one in the circa 1825 time frame. Color can clearly vary; likely due to sun exposure:

Here from Horne Creek/NC almost a tannish yellow. Or:

From the Joyners at Horse Creek/NC; much more blushed and striped red over a yellow/orange base. Either way plenty of brown dots pervade. Quite a beautiful Apple.

King Solomon is an apple that could be called a chubby medium. Not quite usually large. And it can Ripen from August to September. It is said to be a meaty apple with a small core. But can become bilennial. {Thin!} It is a vigorous tree with a spreading habit.

Flavor wise it is a definite subacidic apple that is fairly juicy. Has a courser grain. And a nice aroma. It is often said to be a flavorful eater. I found no information on pollination group or storage life.

Apple Talk: Mank's Codlin

2025-01-25T19:16:00.002-05:00

Well I decided it would be good to talk about what apple varieties we plan on having and what are here. Starting with Mank's Codlin. A very proper and well know type of cooking apple.

I have high hopes for Mank's Codlin as it has many interesting qualities. It is a pitcher which roots by cuttings. Always nice. It also grows in poor soils well; but only grows to a modest size. It makes heavy annual crops. It does well in cold and wet climates.

It makes a medium size, a bit bigger actually; apple. It is an August apple which keeps for 3 months. It is in Pollination group 2. It is a good apple to bake or makes a great sauce. Like other Codlins it can be picked the size of a walnut and cooked. Having different textures and clarity of flesh depending on the picking date.

It is said to be the sweetest of all the tartish Codlins. And can be eaten fresh off the tree at full ripeness. Mank's Codlin is highly perfumed aromatically. It can range from green to yellow with a pink blush on the sunny side.

Photo credit: http://www.nationalfruitcollection.org.uk/full2.php?varid=3764&&acc=2000064&&fruit=apple

The Polar Vortex Adventure

2025-01-23T18:44:00.001-05:00

Greetings and hoping you are all warm and safe. Here we got 4-5" of snow and now have a series of very cold days for us. Of course the kids have enjoyed there first 2 snow days. The goats and dogs would be glad to see it go.

The apple trees seem ok and even sold a pair of extra trees. Also ordered a small Scion order. Bringing Georgia's Kimrome and Shockley Grizzle to the collection. As well as 4 interesting UK apples. Langleigh Delight, Lord Burghley, Mank's Codlin and Willingham Cropper. Perhaps I will get one more small order done this year. But far less then last year.

Park's Pippin

2025-01-02T11:08:00.000-05:00

I've noticed Park's Pippin has a habit of setting lots of small spurring branches. Hope that bodes well for future crops. This is on M111 so no telling what year it sets fruit.

Differing approach for next year.

2024-12-24T19:54:00.002-05:00

Greeting on Christmas Eve! Hope everyone has a fine and enjoyable holiday with safe travels for all.

With other issues reducing scion purchases the coming year; I will shift most focus onto rootstocks and a greatly reduced scion buying budget. Hopefully 30-40 new types.

However talking around I've learned how I did rootstocks last year was not optimum. I had heard it was ok to keep rootstocks for a short while in the moist sawdust. However I feel this may had lead to reduced root development which contributed to last years fireblight attacks.

From here on out I will till an area just prior to rootstock arrival and heel it in the ground immediately.

Then a wise fellow with the Geneva program said to consider summer chip budding as a way to escape a large chunk of our wet weather fireblight pressure. And this makes a lot of sense given our leaf fall often happens in December. Allowing the new chip grafts to heal over and take.

Setting them out un-topped and dormant. And topping above the bud just before spring. Apparently this is called dormant whips. On the downsides; you add another year to the plan. And budwood is not nearly as common as dormant scions.

Anyway this makes a lot of sense.

Stooling totals.

2024-12-13T21:28:00.004-05:00

Aside from maintaining a mother tree of each type; I will have the following in stool beds:

3 Geneva G.214

7 Polish P.2

17 Malling M111

1 Polish P1

5 unlabelled trees.{I have some evidence 3 are G.214}

12 of my M111 count is by rooting stems cut from grafts

Holidays Slowdown

2024-12-12T18:48:00.000-05:00

Been having issues with a leg wound healing up and have not gotten to tend the garden very much. In addition the cute little baby goats got out of their pen and decided apple leaves taste good. Spent a couple of days baby goat proofing the fence. And they seem to have been stopped now.

Oddly despite already having some chill hour time; many apple trees are putting leaves back on. Did manage to get most of the P.2 planted for stooling. Just 2 trees remain. Still need to get M111 and G.214{what few are left} in the ground.

Talking to a very nice Geneva Professor and he would like me to try G.257 rootstock in our Fire Blight prone hot climate. so maybe in January/February I will get it to try here.

Already have P.14, J-TE-H, Muz Alma, Malus Brevipes, Malus Micromalus and Jadernicka coming to try in rootstock use or breeding. Who knows. G.257 might make that un-needed.

Glad to see Treco finally has some P.18 to sell. I hope to add some small caliper of that and P.22 to my regular order. P.2 and M111. And some other G-series. Perhaps 969 or 935.

The Goatpocalypse exacts it's price of Apple bark

2024-11-14T18:12:00.007-05:00

After relaxing a while and letting the trees grow in the last bits of the growing season. The inevitable happens. Raising Goats as the wife does; the pregnant does sometimes go rogue. And during one day in a series of days of pen breaks; one older doe name Flossy lead an assault on the Apple tree pad.

And lo and behold I see Flossy leading the girls from the back pen. Knocking over and rolling the Apple tree pots and bags. Oddly not eating any. But; she still managed to break my fine 6 foot tall first year Shockley Whip on P.2. Yes folks a metal handled rake went flying in her direction.

After regrafting the tree it is struggling to stay green and leafy. But after securing the back pen fences; my Apple trees {and other fruit trees} are safe from Goat led disasters.

But having pregnant goats does have some benefits. Meet 3 new family members:

All 3 Girls of course!

Agonizing over "Georgia Origin" Apple varieties.

2024-10-26T10:45:00.004-04:00

After a set back and infection of my chronic leg wound; I've been trying to rationalize what "IS" a Georgia Origin apple. And which apples deserve a spot in the orchard. Truthfully their are some surprises and disappointments.

For example "Black Limbertwig" has been claimed as a "Georgia" apple since 1914. However advertising from central Tennessee in 1841 proves it is not "ours". We will include it though.

The same contention lands on "Hackworth" or as it was known in many Georgia Nurseries as "Allsummer". There are some claims this was a Georgia apple absconded away. There is not much evidence Nickademus Hackworth was a pomologist of any sort. We will include it as "Allsummer"

Then we have two Limbertwigs who both do not get much respect. Poor "Old Fashioned" gets so much disrespect. Sorry detractors; OFL is NOT "Red Limbertwig. Red is a medium sized apple that is smaller and keeps longer then OFL. Nor is it "Black Limbertwig" Black being a glossy uniformly covered smooth apple. OLF has a dull and very rough skin.

"Royal" Limbertwig has much in common with OFL. A great multipurpose type. Not as rough as OFL. But Royal is a great warm climate Limbertwig. There really is no origin documented. But it was very popular in Georgia.

So in addition to Black, Royal and OFL; we will add some extremely popular Limbertwigs. Brushy Mountain, Myers Royal, Red Royal, Victoria and White. As well as the rare "Little" Limbertwig.

Back to Georgia; we will have all the Shockley Family we can find. Shockley, Cantrell and Grizzle too. Alas the Shockley prodigy from Cooper estate appear lost. This would be Etowah/Cooper's Red and Cooper's Yellow. While some have erroneously equated it with the "Cooper's Market" variety; that is clearly "Reddling" of a northern state.

But we have plenty of others. Disharoon, Park's Pippin. Yates, Tar Button, Terry Winter, Mrs.Bryan, Striped Sweeting, Clark, Cranberry of North Georgia, Red Detroit{Cherokee}, Rabun Bald, Kimrome, King Solomon, Magnolia Gold, Blairmont, San Jacinto, Wallace Howard. All included.

We have a pair of apples that I'm blah about including. Tanyard Seedling and Bart.

Then there are ones out of grasp or availability. Taunton is hopefully coming soon. Spice of North Georgia is out unless UGA sells more soon. Rabun{not Rabun Bald} only exists in a now closed orchard. Toccoa is over in Aussieland.

Lastly there is a group of "suspected could be from Georgia" with not much else to go on. Candy Stripe, Forward Sour and Summer Row. I am actually more inclined to add these as nothing is really know about them.

Next time we talk "trade apples". Interesting because they were popularly sold here at one point but were not from here.

Taking stock of my late fall orchard.

2024-10-18T19:15:00.002-04:00

Walking around checking who really has come through a rough start. And we definitely have classes of members.

The surprise is "First of May"{Piervomaiskoie}. More grafts of it have survived a tough year more then any other variety. I never hear praises sung about it. But it sure has much grit and tenacity. Qualities well desired for an easy care tree.

Other standouts are Shockley, Yates, Disharoon and Wickson crab. With at least two grafts of each looking very good.

Next we have survivors with a look of being haggard, but still growing. Parks Pippin, Golden Harvey, Old Fashioned Limbertwig{a lazarus come back twice}. Wallace Howard, Pionier, Hudson’s Golden Gem, King Solomon, Chickasaw and one last Blairmont.

Then we regretfully have a sizable group of trees that are a testament to the lie of "Permanent Marker" . About 16 trees that the names faded out on. Embarrassing. But over time I know what we grafted. And I can use their attributes to determine who is who latter.

Which brings up my desire to try water proof plastic paper in my laser printer this fall. They claim they do not fade out. But will need formatting to cut them.