A Rootstock Experiment

Oh ok. Gotcha :+1: Scions would be much easier to send vs rootstock as well :blush:

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Here are a few images of new suckers.

This one was dug in early winter so it is one from last year

This one is at the base

Of this one

This is one was planted a couple years ago and died but sprouted back out this year along with an extra sucker that is coming up to compete with it

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Many people would probably think suckering a bad thing…I see you see the lemonaide with that lemon.

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Some people might not like suckering but then others might now be bothered by it at all :grin: Not something that is hard to get rid of if a person takes care of their trees at all but yes, I had thought some might think it bothersome. I have MM111 that do the same with suckers though and it is a very popular rootstock :man_shrugging:

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Does anyone have any pics of stool beds that they are using for rootstock? I remember seeing the method of the tractor tires of @clarkinks but I can’t remember where now :thinking:

EDIT Just looking through search and I did find a few good threads but if anyone has any pics of stuff they have done then it would be great in here as well :+1:

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Hello. I am so interested in what you are doing. I have seed grown test apple trees and I am considering stooling the suckers of my precocious Gala for my own use. I really like the size of your Key apple (is that the name?) … I would be interested in testing seeds from your tree. Also when you are ready to sell rootstock I want in on that too. Thanks for your testing efforts. I personally don’t listen to the folks who swear that seedlings are useless and that we must stick with the grafted ($$$) nursery stock ($$$) … let’s not forget how we got all the varieties we have now. I know it takes years to test but what else do I have to spend the rest of my life doing? Thanks for your post. Teri Smith from 3 Hoop Farm Prescott Valley AZ (7b)

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Yes, it is called a Key apple. After apple season is over I will try and remember to get with you about some seeds and also see if I have any rootstock or scions that can be used to root graft as well @TyleeBeez It will surely help if I can get others in on this. It will be for a much better test :+1:

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Correct this is the thread Making a pear stoolbed for propagating rootstocks . @39thparallel does some stooling as well.

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That was the thread I was remembering :+1: Thanks for the link @clarkinks

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Measured the tree at my in-laws today and the measurements for the largest of the 4 is around 14 feet tall and 14 feet wide. Here is a pic of that tree. It is almost 20 years old. Well the roots are much much older. A storm came through almost 20 years ago (tornado maybe but not 100% sure of that now) and blew the 30 plus year old trees down and then they sprouted back and have made it to this point again. Which my father in law told me that the original size was the same as they are now again.

I still need to go back to the original tree and measure it as well.

I also need to mention that this tree has never been pruned to my knowledge. So that means the size it is, is the size it is after close to 20 years.

If I were to request some pollen from this tree years from now, would you be able to provide me with some?

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I will have to wait til next year as it already flowered. Just have to remind me and give me an idea of how to do it correctly :+1:

I also don’t guess I will be able to plant seeds from them this year or give anyone any seeds :man_facepalming:

It looks like they all froze out… My father-in-law told me he thought they froze out in the last frost. I went and checked and sure enough I didn’t see anything :frowning: I do hope a few survived on at least 1 of their trees but it doesn’t look good.

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I am not prepared this year anyway, I am going to be doing a hybridization project to create a root stock of my own, yet it’s a complex project, I am not even sure what order I am going to do the crossings, I can even change the order if need be, so no worry.

Is the ‘Key’ apple tree self fertile?

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Yes, it is a self fertile tree as far as I know. It has to be thinned or it is biennial. It sets a hugh crop 1 year and then very few the next but my in-laws never thin so it mostly goes though that cycle.

Looking forward to “Key” apples from your scions. They are doing well!! Thanks @Poncho65

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Great to hear it :+1: I just got my rootstock order in yesterday and grafted the 2 plums you sent. I will put the peach scions onto some of my other peaches.

Some of my grafts on pears and apples onto rootstock that I already had have taken and are already starting to grow as well.

Love watching grafts start out and grow. So fun! Good luck in all your grafting this year!

How your red fleshed apples doing, Poncho?

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They are budding out some and a little bit of leaves on them. I believe Redfield, Niedzwetzkyana and Veralma Simontornya are the ones I have that survived. Red Merilynn didn’t make it unfortunately and the Niedzwetzkyana is only a graft on a tree because the whole tree one didn’t take. I appreciate all those and have the other 2 in the ground now. Can’t wait to see what they do this year! @BlueBerry

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