Dallas Fruit and Vegetable Grower

Is It Spring Yet?

Is it Springtime yet?  Not quite, but during this past weekend of January 29th, we had temperatures of 76 degrees, and it felt like Spring.  I wonder if the birds and plants felt the same way.

What inspired me to write this post was the surprise that greeted me this morning when I took our dog out into the backyard.  From a distance, I caught a glimpse of something gray in the entrance to our owl house.   At first, I thought that it must be a squirrel investigating the owl house because it was much too early for the birds to start nesting.   But as I slowly walked toward the owl house, it became surprisingly clear that there was an Eastern Screech Owl inside the house.  As a crept forward to get an even closer look, the owl ducked down and away from the entrance so that I could no longer see it.  (The photograph above is from last year.)

I don't know what to make of this early visit.  As I mentioned earlier, it seems much to early to start nesting.  We have had Eastern Screech Owls take up residence each of the last four years to have their owlets.  However, each time, the mother owl did not appear and begin nesting until late in March or April.  Given that we are still in January, I wonder if she was confused by the 75 degree temperatures over the previous weekend.  If so, the current forecast of low temperatures this week in the teens should dispel that confusion.  I'll be watching for the next few days to see if she sticks around.

We now have Eastern Screech Owls flying around our yard at night all year long.  Just the other morning, I woke up particularly early and took our dog outside while it was still dark.  As I stood out in the yard, a huge shadow glided silently overhead from one tree to another.  It was a big silhouette that I knew could only be one of our owls.  Often times, in the early evening, I will hear the trilling whistle of a screech owl that lets me know they are still around.  And every once in a while when I work outside at dusk, an owl will float by to perch in a tree or on a fence top to keep an eye on me.

They are such fascinating and majestic animals.  I cannot encourage you enough to put up an owl house of your own.

Planting Times for Spring Seedlings in Dallas

The following is a seed starting schedule for the Dallas area from John Jeavons' outstanding book How to Grow More Vegetables.

This schedule assumes an average last frost date of March 21st.  Note that this is an average date, and different sources claim an average frost date of anywhere from March 10th through April 8th for the Dallas / Forth Worth area.

Here is a link to a useful Interactive Map showing first and last frost dates.

If you are outside of Dallas, adjust the dates accordingly.

February 7th (6 weeks before last spring frost)

Start seedlings for:

broccoli

brussel sprouts

cabbage

cauliflower

celery

lettuce

parsley

tomatoes

February 14th (5 weeks before last spring frost)

Start seedlings:

carrots

beets

spinach

February 28th (3 weeks before last spring frost)

Start seedlings:

bush peas

March 7th (2 weeks before last spring frost)

Sprout: sweet potatoes

Start seedlings:

chard

dill

eggplant

green peppers

spinach

Transplant/plant outside:

beets

broccoli

brussel sprouts

bush peas

cabbage

carrots

cauliflower

lettuce

onion sets

radishes

March 21st (last spring frost)

Start seedlings:

cantaloupe & melon

cucumbers

pumpkin

basil

zucchini

Transplant/plant: potatoes

April 4th (2 weeks after last spring frost)

Start seedlings:

bush green beans

bush lima beans

Transplant/plant:

chard

spinach

green beans - vining

April 11th (3 weeks after last spring frost) 

Transplant/plant:

early corn

tomatoes

April 18th (4 weeks after last spring frost)

Transplant:

basil

bush green beans

bush lima beans

cucumbers

dill

pumpkin

zucchini

May 2nd (6 weeks after last spring frost)

Transplant:

cantaloupe & melon

celery

May 9th (7 weeks after last spring frost)

Transplant:

eggplant

green peppers

parsley

I personally like to plant some of these directly in the ground and save myself the trouble of starting seeds under grow lights in my garage.  The items listed in blue above are the vegetables/fruits that I sow directly in the ground (bush green beans, bush lima beans, cucumbers, cantaloupe, corn).  With my space limitations, I usually cannot get my warm weather vegetables in the ground right after the last frost date because I am still waiting on some of my spring vegetables.  If you want to get an early jump on your warm weather vegetables, by all means get them started as seeds using this schedule.

For the items in red, I have planted these in the late fall and let them grow through the winter under hoop houses.

For some of these vegetables, I will plant succession sowings every 2 to 4 weeks (radishes, corn, climbing green beans, melon, water melon)

Kuffel Creek Apple Nursery - Testing Apple Varieties for Warmer Climates

If you are interested in growing apple trees in the South, Kuffel Creek Orchard has an interesting website identifying some of the apple varieties that have done well in Southern California's warm climate in their own testing - Kuffel Creek.

Here are two YouTube videos discussing some of the testing that they are doing:

Episode 1:

 

Episode 2:

 

Growing Pear Trees in Dallas and Texas

There seems to be a fair amount of agreement on the varieties of pear trees that you should be growing in North Texas.  Most resources recommend fireblight resistant, Oriental hybrid varieties that can be just as good as the European pears. 

Everyone seems to agree that the European pears such as Bartlett, Doyenne, Bosc, Comice, and D'Anjou do not do well in Texas because of fireblight.  This is a real shame because these varieties are excellent varieties for fresh eating with their fine, sweet, melting flesh.

Texas A&M's AgriLife Extension recommends three varieties as the best for Texas and provides the following descriptions of them:

Warren. Excellent dessert quality in both the flesh and peel with a smooth, buttery texture and small- to medium size, red-blushed fruit. Ripens in August. Highly resistant to fire blight. A seedling tree discovered in Hattisburg, Mississippi by T. O. Warren.

Ayres. Excellent dessert quality, although not as good as Warren. Medium-size fruit with a brown russet and red blush. Ripens in August. Highly resistant to fire blight.

Magness. Excellent dessert quality with medium size fruit similar to Warren. Ripens in August. Highly resistant to fire blight.

(http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/homefruit/pear/pear.html; http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/fruit/pear/pear.html)

Bob Wells of Bob Wells Nursery, an East Texas nursery specializing in fruit trees and bushes, also recommends Ayers which he says is a "very sweet summer pear."  Mr. Wells also favors Orient which he says is a "large bell-shaped pear" that "ripens late summer" and is "very sweet."  He also likes LeConte which he describes as a "crisp, sweet summer pear" with "great color."

Texas A&M's AgriLife Extension also lists these same varieties, along with several others, as additional options for Texas, but claims that they are inferior to Warren, Ayres, and Magness:

Maxine. Very good dessert quality with medium to large attractive fruit. Good to fair fire blight resistance. Ripens in August-early September. Reported to be the same pear as Starking Delicious.

Moonglow. Good dessert quality with medium to large fruit that ripens in August-early September. Good fire blight resistance.

Garber. Good dessert quality with medium to large, crisp-textured, attractive fruit of a shape similar to Delicious apples. Ripens in August. Good to fair fire blight resistance. Often called apple-pear or pear-apple.

LeConte. Good dessert quality, medium-size, attractive fruit that ripens in August-early September. Fair fire blight resistance. Fan-Still, a variety propagated and sold in the San Antonio area, appears to be a LeConte seedling with similar quality and reported better fire blight resistance.

Monterrey. Good dessert quality with large fruit that ripens in August-early September. Good fire blight resistance. Propagated and sold chiefly in the San Antonio area.

Orient. Fair dessert quality, coarse textured, russetted, medium to large fruit. A consistent, heavy bearer that ripens late August-September. Highly resistant to fire blight. Used primarily for canning/baking.

Kieffer. Old standard, coarse-textured fruit that are poor to fair for dessert use but good for canning and baking. A consistent, heavy bearer that ripens late September-October, highly resistant to fire blight.

 (http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/homefruit/pear/pear.html)

You will note that AgriLife's opinion differs from Mr. Wells on LeConte and Orient, but that just goes to show that the issue of taste can often be very subjective to the individual with different people preferring different taste characteristics.  

Two other varieties that you may want to consider that have been recommended for the South in other resources, are:

Seckel.  Described as a small to medium yellow russetted pear with extraordinary flavor.  The fruit is extremely sweet and very juicy with a distinctive, spicy, rich, aromatic flavor.  It is also known as the "sugar" pear which is all I needed to hear!  It is self-fertile, fireblight resistant, and requires 500 chill hours.

Pineapple.  Crisp flesh which is said to have a pineapple flavor.  It is yellow in color blushed with red.  It is also self-fruitful and fireblight resistant.  It requires approximately 150 chill hours.

Interesting, all of these suggestions seem to overlap more or less with an article in Mother Earth News which rated some of the top flavored pears as:  Magness, Kieffer, Pineapple,  Seckel, Warren, Maxine and Honeysweet.

Not previously mentioned, several other sources claim that the Potomac is also an excellent, fire-blight resistant variety introduced by the USDA in 1993 with rich buttery taste.  It's parents are D'Angou and Moonglow. 

My Pear Trees

I myself have planted the following varieties in my garden: Orient, Moonglow, Monterrey, Warren, Magness, Kieffer, Pineapple, and Seckle.

Rootstock

When selecting your trees, it is very important to look closely at the rootstock upon which the trees are grafted.  The rootstock will dictate how large the tree will get.  You do not want to plant a tree that will get too big for the space in which you are placing it.  You will be very disappointed and, along with the additional work entailed, the additional pruning to keep its size in check may adversely impact fruit production.   

 

Cross-Pollination

While several varieties lsited here are self-fertile, you are going to want to plant at least two varieties of pear trees to ensure proper cross-pollination and fruit set.  Some varieties require a cross-pollinator.  Even the self-fertile varieties will set more fruit with another pollinator.  To ensure good cross-pollination, make sure that you have two varieties that will bloom around approximately the same period of time.   I have not found a thorough list of bloom times for all of these Oriental hybrid varieties, yet.  However, note that Moonglow, Seckel and Honeysweetshould be good pollinators for the vast majority of these varieties, with the exception of Magness.  Magness will not be a good pollinator, because it is sterile.

 

Considerations Regarding Fireblight

Many varieties of pears, even the more resistant varieties, can be impacted by fire blight.  The best way to avoid fire blight is to not use fertilizer with a high nitrogen content.  Excessive amounts of nitrogen encourages fire blight.  If fire blight does show up, cut the infected branch off as soon as you can and destroy it.  In caring for your pear trees, I have found that the occasional spraying of Garrett Juice or compost tea seems to ward off problems for me.  Additionally, the makers of Actinovate claim that the use of their product as a foliar spray can help prevent fireblight.

 

Ideas on Nurseries

If you are looking for an instant orchard, your choices are limited.  Check now with your local nurseries to see what varieties they are or will be caring this Spring and in what sizes.  I typically only see 5 gallon containers in my local nurseries.

Bob Wells Nursery will often carry 5, 10, and 15 gallon trees, so you can try that. 

 

Willis Orchard Company sells large trees; however be forewarned that these are going to be bare-rooted plants which can sometimes demand more TLC.   (I no longer recommend using this company as I have now discovered that they sent me several fruit trees that were completely different varieties.  For example, they sent me standard pears instead of the asian pears I ordered!!)

Edible Landscaping also sometimes carries larger sized specimen.

If you are a more patient person and are willing to plant a smaller tree, there are a lot of options out there.  Some of them include:

Texas Nurseries:

Bob Wells Nursery 

Womack Nursery

Cummins Nursery

Caldwell Nursery 

 Nurseries Outside of Texas

Raintree Nursery

Trees of Antiquity

One Green World

Ison's Nursery

Johnson Nursery

Chestnut Hill Tree Farm

Stark Brothers

Grandpa's Orchard

Bay Laurel Nursery

Big Horse Creek Farm

Kuffel Creek Apple Nursery

Cloud Mountain Farm

Burnt Ridge Nursery

Greenmantle Nursery

Southmeadow Fruit Gardens

If you have planted pear trees in Texas that are bearing fruit, please post a comment and share your experiences along with your favorite varieties for Texas.

Bloom Times for Apple Trees

Here is a list of approximate bloom times for apple trees.  This listing should help you in deciding on your apple trees to make sure that you have two trees which will pollinate each other.  You want at least two trees pollinating around the same period of time.  If you have the space, you really want to have two cultivars for early, mid, and late season.  That way, you will extend your season of ripening fruit.

Remember that the Triploid varieties are not effective pollinators.

Early Bloom                         Midseason Bloom                     Late Bloom

Beacon                                       Akane                                              Baldwin

Chestnut Crab                        Arkansas Black                            Ben Davis

Cole's Quince                          Blue Pearmain                             Bramley's Seedling

Idared                                        Braeburn                                       Connell Red

Irish Peach                              Calville Blanc d'Hiver                  Criterion

Jonamac                                   Canada Reinette                         Enterprise

Liberty                                      Chenango Strawberry                   Fuji

Maiden's Blush                      Cortland                                          Golden Delicious

Mantet                                      Cox's Orange Pippin                  Golden Noble

Margil                                       Empire                                             GoldRush

Mcintosh                                 Esopus Spitzenburg                       Horse

Nova Easygro                        Fireside                                           Hubbardston Nonesuch

Oriole                                        Freedom                                         Keepsake

Parkland                                  Gala                                                  Lady

Paulared                                  Granny Smith                                   Lobo

Red Gravenstein                  Grimes Golden                                 Macoun

Smokehouse                          Haralson                                         Melrose

Spartan                                    Honeycrisp                                    Mother

Summer Rambo                   Hudson's Golden Gem              Northern Spy

Swaar                                        James Grieve                                Peck's Pleasant

Twenty-Ounce Pippin           Jefferis                                                Pristine

Wealthy                                   Jonagold                                         Ralls Janet

White Winter Pearmain       Jonathan                                             Rome Beauty

Wickson                                  Kidd's Orange Red                      Simirenko Reinette

Wynoochee                           King David                                      Spigold

Yates                                        Kingston Black                              Tolman Sweet

Yellow Transparent              Lubsk Queen                                       Whitney Crab

Zestar                                      Macfree                                             Winter Banana

                                                   Melrose                                             York Imperial

                                                   Minnesota 1734                

                                                   Mollie's Delicious             

                                                   Mutsu (Crispin)                 

                                                  Newtown Pippin                

                                                  Pink Lady                           

                                                  Pink Pearl                           

                                                  Pound Sweet                      

                                                  Prairie Spy                          

                                                  Red Baron                          

                                                  Red Delicious                    

                                                  Redfree                               

                                                  Rhode Island Greening     

                                                  Ribston Pippin                   

                                                  Ross Nonpareil                  

                                                  Shizuka                               

                                                  Spartan                                

                                                  Spencer                               

                                                  Splendour                           

                                                  Stayman Winesap             

                                                  Suncrisp                              

                                                  Sweet Sixteen                    

                                                  Tompkins King                  

                                                  Tydeman's Red                  

                                                  William's Pride                  

                                                  Wolf River                         

                                                  Zabergau Reinette             

 

                                              Triploid Varieties            

 Arkansas Black                   Jonagold                                      Sir Prize

Baldwin                                   Karmin de Sonnaville            Spigold

Belle de Boskoop                Lady                                               Stayman Winesap

Blenheim Orange                Mutsu (Crispin)                         Summer Rambo

Bramley's Seedling            Rhode Island Greening          Turley Winesap

Gravenstein                          Ribston Pippin                           Zabergau Reinette

Hibernal                                 Shizuka

 

* The Apple Grower, Michael Phillips, Chelsea Green Publishing Company (2005).

 

 

Cold, snowy week in Dallas

We had our first real snow of the winter in Dallas on Sunday, January 9, 2011.  In our neighborhood, we received somewhere between a half an inch to an inch of snow.  It was wet snow perfect for snowball fights and for making a snowman.

 

That snow was followed by almost five straight days of freezing weather!  That is pretty unusual for us.  While the mercury popped above freezing for a little bit during that period of time, it was below freezing for the majority of it, bottoming out at 20 degrees.

That probably doesn't seem like much for Northerners, but that is cold for us.

After a week of cold weather like that, most of us are ready for Spring.  But I actually enjoy these cold spells.  Every chilly, cold day means twenty four more quality chill hours toward a great fruit harvest.  Think about it.  With that cold five day spell, we added another 120 chill hours toward our winter total.  For my apples, plums, and pears, that is good news.

Compared to last year, it really feels like Texas has had a much milder winter this year.  Last winter, we were indundated with snow and cold.  It was the most snow that I could remember since the 1980's, snowing four or five times.  This year, in comparison, has been downright balmy.  Of course, January and February are our coldest months, so we could still be in for a lot more cold weather and snow.  We will see.

After the cold weather lifted, the frost covers came off my vegetable beds, and our winter vegetables are still chugging along.  While the onions, carrots, beets, turnips, celery, broccolli, turnips, etc. are slowly growing, the lettuce and herbs are going strong.  The frost covers are working great.

 

Growing apple trees in Dallas and Texas

(1st row: Red Delicious, Sonya, Golden Delicious; 2nd row: Ambrosia, Honey Crisp, Granny Smith; 3rd row: Fuji, Jonagold, Gala  - ©iStockphoto.com)

If you are planning to add some apple trees to your landscape, now is the time to start planning for them.  Texas A&M recommends that bare-rooted apple trees be planted during the period between January 1st and February 15th and that containerized plants be planted between January 1st and March 31st.

In this post, I have listed some of the varieties that are good choices for North Texas and/or zone 8, in terms of climate and in terms of taste.  These lists include both heirloom and newer cultivars.

Everyone has a different opinion as to which are the best tasting apples.  And my favorite apple may be your least favorite, depending upon our varying tastes and whether we prefer a sweet taste, an acidic taste, or a combination of the two.  When I was trying to decide upon the types of apple trees to plant in our garden, I purchased 10 or more different varieties from several grocery stores, and I put them to a blind taste test to all the members of my family.  The highest rated ones were planted . . . after I made sure that they would perform well in the South.

Texas A&M's Tried & True - But No Guarantees on Taste Except Where Noted

Texas A&M opines that the following varieties are suitable for growing in Texas.  I have emboldened the varieties that I also personally believe have a good taste.

Gala        "Originated in 1965.  Cross between Golden Delicious x Cox's Orange.  Red striping on golden skin gives a red orange color.  Crisp, dense, aromatic flesh.  Excellent quality.  Stores well.  Large, vigorous tree.  Requires about 140-160 days from bloom to harvest.  Requires at least 600 hours of chilling." *

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Gala

Fuji                 "Developed in Japan.  Introduced in 1962.  Cross between Ralls Janet x Delicious. Bloom well.  Hard to thin.  High quality apple with a poor appearance.  Medium sized fruit with a tall, rectangular shape.  A yellow-green skin with orange to red stripes.  Crisp, juicy, white flesh with good texture.  Requires about 140-160 days from bloom to harvest.  Ripens mid-summer.  Stores well.  Vigorous, productive, somewhat bushy tree.  Needs some annual detailed pruning.  Needs pollinator.  Susceptible to Bitter rot and red mites.  Heat resistant.  Requires 400-600 hours of chilling." *

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Fuji

Granny Smith "Originated in 1868 from some discarded apples which Mrs. Thomas Smith of Eastwood Ryde, Paramatta Rive, New South Wales, Australia brought from Tasmania.  Medium to large, waxy, grassy-green fruit. Firm and bruise resistant.  Hardy, crisp, juicy, white flesh.  Fairly sweet with a somewhat tart taste.  Excellent quality eating and cooking apple.  Keeps good texture during baking, never gets mushy.  Excellent shelf life.  Very vigorous, annual bearing.  Good productivity.  Self-fertile.  Requires about 170-210 days from bloom to harvest.  Holds well in heat.  Requires about 500-600 hours of chilling.  Hardy in zones 5-8." *

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Granny Smith

Anna               "Medium-size low chill apple for South Texas only. Has a slight red blush, crisp, good-flavored fruit. Noted for heavy production." *

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Anna

Braeburn        "Red, highly flavored with an even sugar to acid balance. A heavy cropper that will usually need thinning to maintain yearly cropping." *

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Braeburn

Mutsu (Crispin)          "Developed in Japan in 1948.  Golden Delicious x Indo.  Large, round, yellow fruit.  Crunchier flesh; more juice and tartness.  Distinctive, delicate, spicy flavor.  Good dessert and processing apple.  Excellent for applesauce and cider.  Large, spreading, vigorous tree; reliable.  Resistant to powdery mildew.  Susceptible to scab, blister spot, and bitter rot.  Requires 500-600 hours of chilling.  Hardy in zones 4-8." *

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Mutsu

Pink Lady(Cripps Pink)        "A cross between Golden Delicious and Lady Williams from the Western Australian apple-breeding program.  Oblong, green fruit turns yellow at maturity and is overlaid with pink or light red.  Fine-grained, white flesh.  Thin skin, bruises easily.  Hard to train.  Ripens in October.  Blind wood problems.  Chilling requirements similar to Granny Smith (500-600)." *

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Pink Lady

Mollie's Delicious      "Introduced in 1966.  Summer apple not to be confused with Red Delicious strains.  Attractive, large fruit with unique, slightly conic shape.  Light yellow background about half covered with a red blush.  High quality flesh.  Good flavor.  Stores for about 10 weeks in refrigeration.  Vigorous, productive tree.  Fruit tends to set in clusters, requiring 2-3 pickings.  Excellent pollinator.  Some disease resistance.  Requires 400-500 hours of chilling.  Best in zones 6-8." *

Imperial Gala              "Medium sized, oval to round reddish orange fruit.  Extremely firm, very juicy, sweet, mildly aromatic, yellow flesh.  Vigorous tree with long, pliant branching." *

Royal Gala                  "Developed in New Zealand.  Matures to a bright overall red color rather than the orange red blush of Gala.  Medium size, conical to round fruit.  Bold red stripes over yellow background.  Firm, juicy, fine textured, yellow-white flesh.  Sweet, slightly tart flavor.  Compact growth habit, prolific bearer.  Requires heavy thinning to maintain fruit size and prevent biennial bearing." *

Smoothie                    "A Golden Delicious type apple with a clear skin.  They have a very tender complexion, a little dew on the fruit in the morning and they are covered with russet.  This visually makes them an undesired fruit, but if given a chance, taste good." *

Red Delicious             "Skin color varies from red to red and green stripes.  Crisp, sweet, and mild flavored.  Stores well.  Colors poorly in the heat.  **

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Red Delicious

(Personally, I do not care for the Red Delicious that I have had in the past.  Here is an interesting article on the history of the Red Delicious.

Golden Delicious        Yellow to green skin with yellow flesh and russet dots.  Sweet, juicy and fine textured.  Stores well.  Susceptible to bitter pit, bruising, and russetting.  Erratic in self-fruitfulness. **

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Golden Delicious

Holland           Originated in Texas around 1923 at the home of J. W. Kincaid of Weatherford, Texas.  Originally named Kincaid.  The apple was once an important commercial variety in Texas. It is a productive variety which ripens early to produce a large, red, flavorful apple. ***

Jerseymac       An early McIntosh type released by the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station in 1971.  Tart and tender. Medium size.  Ripens in early August.

Dorsett Golden           "Yellow, low chill apple for South Texas only. Pollinator for Anna." *

Adina              "Large fruit, sweet with distinctive taste."  *

Ozark Gold     "Yellow, Delicious-type dessert apple. Good pollinator." *

"This apple is a cross of A1291 and Golden Delicious and was developed at the Missouri State Agricultural Experimental Station and introduced in 1970. It is similar in flavor and appearance to Golden Delicious but ripens about three weeks earlier. It bears young and shows some disease resistance but is a biennial bearer.  It is a large to very large apple with bright yellow waxy skin."  ***

Starkrimson Red         "Red, excellent quality, Delicious-type, widely planted in this Delicious area." *

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Starkrimson

*          http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/homefruit/apple/apple.html                         http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/hillcountry/Apples/varieties.html

**        The Home Orchard, C. Ingells, P. Geisel, & M. Norton, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publication (2007)

***      http://www.bighorsecreekfarm.com/descriptions2.htm

Additional Varieties That Should Be Considered For Taste

The following apple varieties have reputations for outstanding taste and are also suited for Texas' southern climate.  You should consider growing these in zone 8.

Ashmead's Kernel     A juicy, aromatic apple with a sharp flavor that is both acidic and sweet.  It is believed that several weeks of storage enhance its flavor giving its high acid content time to balance with the sugars.  Skin is orange or reddish bronze with golden brown russetting.   It dates back to the 1700s.  ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Ashmead's Kernel

William's Pride          This variety is reputed to have unusually good flavor for an early summer apple.  The flesh is granular, crisp and mildly acidic.  It is typically deep red over a green background which transitions to a yellow background.  It is resistant to fire blight and powdery mildew and immune to scab and cedar apple rust.  This apple was developed by the Purdue/Rutgers/Illinois fruit breeding program.  ****

Goldrush         This variety has a spicy flavor of intense acidity and high sugar content.  It is a yellow green fruit with light russetting, sometimes having an orange blush on the sunward side.  It may keep for six months or more.  It is immune to apple scab and somewhat resistant to fire blight and powdery mildew.  It is also a result of the Purdue/Rutgers/Illinois fruit breeding program.  ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Goldrush

Calville Blanc D'Hiver          This variety dates back to the 16th century and is known for having a tart and rich taste described as effervescent.  It often tastes better after storage.  It has pale green skin that develops an orange color with light red dots where exposed to the sun.  It can be susceptible to scab and powdery mildew. ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Calville Blanc

Rubinette       An offspring of Cox Orange Pippen.  A very good sweet and sharp balance of taste.  It can be susceptible to scab and powdery mildew. ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Rubinette

**** The Best Apples to Buy and Grow, B. Hanson, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Inc. (2005);            see also http://www.kuffelcreek.com/favorites.htm

Varieties With Reputations As The BEST Tasting

The following three varieties are reputed to be the best tasting ever.  As I mentioned before, taste is a matter of opinion; however, it is remarkable how much is written about these varieties.  There are several caveats to growing these trees because they are better suited to more Northern climates.  Particularly, they may suffer more in our heat; they may be more susceptible to disease than the hardier varieties; and their taste qualities may not be as good as trees grown in a milder climate.  Nevertheless, if you have the space and have also already planted some of the hardier varieties listed above, you may want to take the leap and plant a few of these as well:

Newtown Pippin:        This apple is firm, crisp, juicy, and moderately acidic with a fresh taste.  Loved by Thomas Jefferson and was a prized export to England from the United States in the 1800s.  It is green in color becoming yellow to greenish-yellow with a reddish blush.  It stores well.  The tree is susceptible to scab and powdery mildew.  Also known as Albemarle Pippin ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Newtown Pippin

Cox Orange Pippin:   It has a crisp texture and a richly aromatic and semi-tart flavor.  It became the most popular apple in England and dates back to the early 1800s.  The skin has an orange red blush on a light yellow background.  It is susceptible to scab. ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Cox Orange Pippin

Esopus Spitzenberg:  This variety is rich, juicy, and more tart than sweet.  Known as another one of Thomas Jefferson's favorite apples -- along with a lot of other people.  Often ranks at the top of taste tests.  The skin is red with speckles of yellow.   This variety is susceptible to scab, mildew and canker. ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Esopus Spitzenberg

**** The Best Apples to Buy and Grow, B. Hanson, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Inc. (2005);           see also http://www.kuffelcreek.com/favorites.htm

Other Varieties Offered By Texas Nurseries or Suggested for Southern Climates

Some of the other varieties that I have seen offered by a few Texas nurseries or which are otherwise recommended for growing in the South, are listed below.  The nursery descriptions are included.   I am unable to offer an opinion as to the taste qualities of these varieties other than what is written here:

Einshemer:     An "Israeli variety that produces bright yellow fruits with a semi-acid, sweet flavor." +

Jonared:          "Very productive Jonathon cross.  Improved Hybrid." +

Stayman Winesap:     "Firm, crisp fruit with tangy flavor.  Good for dessert or canning" +

Flesh is "finely textured, juicy, and moderately acidic with a sprightly, wine-like flavor."  Greenish-yellow undercolor with light red stripes or crimson blush.  It can be stored for 2 to 3 months.  Can be susceptible to fire blight.  ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Stayman

Jonathon:        "A favorite for home orchards.  Moderately tart and crispy." +

Firm, crisp, juicy, and very aromatic flesh.  Flavor can range from mild to tart with its acidity.  Thought to be a seedling of Esopus Spitzenberg from New York.  Bright yellow overlaid by bright red skin.  Can be susceptible to fire blight.  ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Jonathan

Arkansas Black:         "Purplish black fruit, crisp and juicy."  ++

Hard, very firm flesh, with a course, almost woody texture.  Mild but balanced taste which is more sweet than acidic.  Resistant to fire blight and cedar apple rust but susceptible to scab.  ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Arkansas Black

King David:        "Resembles Winesap in appearance and taste. Many uses - pies, cider, sauce or eating fresh. Found as a chance seedling in fence row in Washington Co., Arkansas in 1893. Medium size, deep red when full ripe. Hangs on tree well. Ripens about 1st Sept." ++

Very firm to hard flesh.  Crisp and juicy with an old fashioned spicy, ciderlike flavor.  Tough skin that softens with storage or with further ripening.  Resistant to fire blight, scab, and cedar apple rust.  ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - King David

Grimes Golden:        The course flesh is crisp and tender with a spicy, sweet flavor.  It has a high sugar content.  Dating back to the early 1800s, it is believed to be a parent of Golden Delicious.   The skin is greenish-yellow with some russetting. ****         

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Grimes Golden

Idared:        Juicy Moderately crisp with a mild flavor that is tart to moderately acidic.  This apple is often used for cooking or cider.  Red fruit on a greenish white under color.  ****

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Idared

Mammoth Blacktwig:        Crisp, firm flesh that is juicy and mildly tart.  It is believed to be a Winesap seedling originating in Arkansas.  Fruits become sweeter as they mature.  It is red over a yellow background.  It is susceptible to scab but resistant to fire blight and cedar apple rust.  ****

Ralls Genet:        This apple is "dense, crisp, and tender with a flavor that balances tart and sweet."  It has a sweet aroma.  It dates back to the 1700s from Virginia, and it is a parent of Fuji.  It has greenish-yellow skin streaked with shades of pink, red, and crimson.  It is a late bloomer.   It can be susceptible to scab, blossom blight, and bitter rot.  ****  

Summer Champion:        Crisp, juicy, and moderately acidic developing a balanced flavor with old time apple taste.  It originates from Arkansas.  This is an early season apple.  The skin has pink to red stripes over a yellow green undercolor.  ****

Winesap (original):        Winelike flavor with acidity.  Considered to be sweet, tart, and juicy.   It stores well.  It originated in the early 1800s in New Jersey.  It typically is dark red in color.  **** 

To read a more detailed description of this variety, please visit - Winesap

+       http://www.bobwellsnursery.com/

++     http://www.womacknursery.com/apples.html

**** The Best Apples to Buy and Grow, B. Hanson, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Inc. (2005)

Rootstock

When selecting your trees, it is very important to look closely at the rootstock upon which the trees are grafted.  The rootstock will dictate how large the tree will get.  You do not want to plant a tree that will get too big for the space in which you are placing it.  You will be very disappointed and, along with the additional work entailed, the additional pruning to keep its size in check may adversely impact fruit production.  Some of the more common rootstocks are:

Dwarf tree (6-9 feet):                            M-9 or M-26 rootstock

Semi-dwarf tree (12-15 feet):            MM-111 or M-7 rootstock

          Full-sized tree (20-25 feet):               seedling rootstock

Cross-Pollination

While a few varieties are self-fertile, you are going to want to plant at least two varieties of apple trees to ensure proper cross-pollination and fruit set.  Please note that triploid apples are essentially sterile and will not serve as a pollinizer.  If you already have crab-apples, those can often serve as pollinizers.

To ensure good cross-pollination, make sure that you have two varieties that will bloom around approximately the same period of time, e.g. early bloom, mid-season bloom, late-season bloom.

Considerations When Planting

This is not intended to be a guide for planting an apple tree.  If you are looking for that kind of guidance, I recommend that you visit this link for a pretty thorough "how-to" primer.

Nevertheless, when you plant your trees, I encourage you to add compost, Mycorrhizal fungi, and Actinovate to the backfill when you are planting.

In Texas, apple trees can be susceptible to a soil-borne fungal pathogen known as Cotton Root Rot  (Phymatotricum omnivorum).  Actinovate contains beneficial microrganisms that prevent Cotton Root Rot. 

Many varieties of apples can also sometimes succumb to fire blight.  The best way to avoid fire blight is to not use fertilizer with a high nitrogen content.  Excessive amounts of nitrogen encourages fire blight.  If fire blight does show up, cut the infected branch off as soon as you can and destroy it.

Finally, in caring for your apple trees, I have found that the occasional spraying of Garrett Juice or compost tea seems to ward off problems for me.

Ideas on Nurseries

If you are looking for an instant orchard, your choices are limited.  Check now with your local nurseries to see what varieties they are or will be caring this Spring and in what sizes.  I typically only see 5 gallon containers in my local nurseries.

Bob Wells Nursery will often carry 5, 10, and 15 gallon trees, so you can try that. 

Willis Orchard Company sells large trees; however be forewarned that these are going to be bare-rooted plants which can sometimes demand more TLC.   (I no longer recommend using this company as I have now discovered that they sent me several fruit trees that were completely different varieties.  For example, they sent me standard pears instead of the asian pears I ordered!!)

Edible Landscaping also sometimes carries larger sized specimen.

If you are a more patient person and are willing to plant a smaller tree, there are a lot of options out there.  Some of them include:

Texas Nurseries:

Bob Wells Nursery 

 Womack Nursery

Cummins Nursery

Caldwell Nursery 

Nurseries Outside of Texas

Raintree Nursery

Trees of Antiquity

One Green World

Johnson Nursery

Chestnut Hill Tree Farm

Stark Brothers

Grandpa's Orchard

Bay Laurel Nursery

Big Horse Creek Farm

Kuffel Creek Apple Nursery

Cloud Mountain Farm

Burnt Ridge Nursery

Greenmantle Nursery

Southmeadow Fruit Gardens

Orange Pippin Fruit Trees

Urban Homestead

Vintage Virginia Apples

 

Sampling Apples

Starting with your local organic grocer is a good way to explore the different flavors of heirloom apples.

You can also taste some of the less commercial heirloom varieties through these mail order companies:

Applesource

Tree-Mendus Fruit Farm

Kilcherman's Christmas Cove Farm

Lakeside Orchards

 

If you have planted apple trees in Texas that are bearing fruit, please post a comment and share your experiences along with your favorite varieties for Texas.

Cox Orange Pippin - ©iStockphoto.com

Winter 2010 Issue of Edible Dallas & Fort Worth

 

The latest issue of Edible Dallas is available online here - Winter 2010

There are several good articles in it.

10 The Organic Pickings of Ty Wolosin 15 A Musician’s Gypsy Kitchen Goes Local 20 Artful Cuisine with a Modern Twist Photos: Top to bottom, Lauren McClure, Richard Adams, Kris Hundt, Matthew Rainwater

CONTENTS 4 EDITOR’S LETTER 6 NOTABLE EDIBLES 9 WINTER GARDENING WITH THE DIRT DOCTOR BY HOWARD GARRETT 10 AT THE ROAD’S END Organic Life At Windy Hill BY VALERIE GORDON GARCIA 15 MUSICIAN JACK JOHNSON GOES GREEN, GETS FRESH BY TERESA GUBBINS 18 AT THE TABLE WITH TRACY ACHOR HAYES BY JOSLYN TAYLOR 19 WHAT’S FRESH? 20 THE ART OF MODERN EATING BY ANNA CAPLAN 25 BRINGING THE PARTY HOME An Attempt at La Vida Locavore BY LAUREN MCCLURE 30 BROKEN ARROW RANCH An Edible Enterprise BY ROBIN CHOTZINOFF 33 EAT DRINK LOCAL GUIDE 34 A TALE OF BLENDED FLAVORS: INDIA & TEXAS BY PRAJAKTA REMULKAR MATHUR 38 SOURCE GUIDE 40 CLOSING TIME

 

"Our Edible Landscape"

 
I just found this interesting on-line book about Texas edible landscaping published by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service.  It talks about one family's experiences growing an edible landscape on the Gulf Coast.

Click this link - Our Edible Landscape.

Growing cherry trees in Dallas and Texas

©iStockphoto.com

I ordered a few more cherry trees for our "urban orchard" this winter.  I am particularly excited about them because they are relatively new varieties bred by Zaiger Genetics to have a low chill requirement.   They are called Royal Lee and Minnie Royal and advertised as only needing 200 to 500 chilling hours - with an emphasis on the lower end of that spectrum.  It appears that these two varieties have only been available for sale since 2008 or so.

Zaiger's main wholesale distributor, Dave Wilson Nursery, describes Royal Lee as: a medium-large red cherry; heart shaped, very firm with excellent flavor; ripening 11-14 days ahead of Bing; very productive with a low chill requirement; pollinized by Minnie Royal.  Similarly, Minnie Royal is described as: a medium-sized red cherry; firm with good flavor: ripens 11-14 days ahead of Bing; very productive with a low chill requirement; mainly used as a pollinizer for Royal Lee; pollinized by Royal Lee.   Here is a YouTube video on Minnie Royal.

If you are thinking of planting fruit trees this year, now is the time to order them as the majority of nurseries will deliver them bare-rooted and should be planted before spring bud break.  Texas A&M recommends that bare-rooted cherry trees be planted during the period from January through mid-February. 

Here are some of the nurseries that are carrying these two low-chill varieties as of January, 2011:

Womack Nursery

Bay Laurel Nursery

Raintree Nursery

Note that Womack is a local Texas nursery located in DeLeon, Texas which is just south of Eastland Texas.  Please note that I could not find any nurseries carrying anything more than a 3/4 inch caliper tree.

It looks like you can theoretically get these trees in a few rootstocks:  3CR178, Colt, and Mazzard.  3CR178 is a new dwarf cherry rootstock from Zaiger Genetics growing to about 8 feet.   The Colt rootstock may be particularly attractive for much of North Texas as it is more forgiving in heavier soils that hold more moisture during the wet season; nevertheless, cherry trees always need good drainage.  Cherry trees on Colt rootstock should be dwarfed at 70 to 80% of standard size.  Mazzard is a full size rootstock.  As far as I can tell, all of the nurseries are sold out of the 3CR178 rootstock this year.  (Please post a comment if you have found otherwise.)

These new varieties should be a welcome addition to Texas.  I have not been able to locate on-line data for the number of chill hours that Dallas has received over the last few years, but some sources suggest that Dallas typically experiences 750 to 1,000 chill hours in a given year.  This falls within the chill hour range for most sour cherries and sweet cherries which typically have listed ranges between 500 and 1,400 hours; however, I'm not convinced that the lower end hours haven't been understated or that Dallas regularly gets enough chilling hours to ensure a consistent crop of traditional sweet cherries. 

Here is the gloomy outlook of Texas A&M:  "Most of Texas lacks sufficient winter chilling needed to produce a normal bloom. Sour cherry varieties, such as Montmorency, bear with fair consistency in North Texas. Sweet cherry varieties are winter-killed because of fluctuating temperatures and are unadapted to all of Texas."  

Despite that grim opinion, it will be interesting to see how these lower chill varieties perform.

As to my personal experiences so far, I planted a Compact Stella, Bing, and Black Tartarian from Willis Orchard Company in the Spring of 2009.  All three are sweet cherry varieties and had 1.5 to 2 inch trunk diameters.  I lost the Bing in 2009 due to poor drainage.  In 2010, following a very cold winter, the Stella set a small amount of fruit.  The Black Tartarian did not set any fruit.   The relatively anemic performance could have been attributable to: not enough chill hours; not enough pollinators; or the fact that these trees have only been in the ground for two years.  I will plant the Royal Lee and Minnie Lee this winter and continue to monitor how the Compact Stella and Black Tartarian do in 2011.  If they again under perform, I may consider replacing them with a lower chill variety.

If you do decide to plant some cherry trees this year, please note that most varieties require a second variety as a pollinator.  A few varieties such as Stella and Lapins are self pollinating.  A few other varieties will not serve as a pollinator for other varieties, so put some thought into what you will be planting.

If you have planted cherry trees in Texas, please post a comment and share your experiences.

©iStockphoto.com