I agree on Enterprise, here in southern Indiana. It is the most disease resistant tree I have. Never ever any sign of cedar apple rust, fireblight, or any other disease. although thousands of eastern red cedars are everywhere, as close as 50 feet to it and some covered in galls. It is also a most beautiful tree and I like the taste of the apples.
Gold Rush was decimated by Cedar Apple Rust, and I had to take it out. I was very disappointed because I heard it tasted great.
Liberty has also never shown any sign of disease, although the bugs sure seem to love it. I rarely spray, but am going to have to if I want apples that aren’t totally infested with insect damage.
I also planted a Freedom, but it is also a Cedar Apple Rust magnet, which surprised me. It has never provided an apple in 10 years. Since I am learning to graft this spring, I am going to chop the top off and try doing some bark grafts with William’s Pride to the main trunk. I hope this might work, but don’t know.
Those Pristine apples in the photo above sure are beautiful. I would like to try them, but wonder if they are Cedar Apple Rust resistant. Apples have to be to make it in this area. Any land cleared here will immediately be covered in thousands of red cedars as it is the pioneer species unless the land is kept mowed.
Sandra
@DTF I was kind of surpised to see pristine flower pop on my apple grafts. Is this really what a pristine flower looks like, tiny, white and bland… ?
Thanks
I’m sure it is. As better question is whether my CAR is truly CAR. Like you, I like in a sea of red cedars but maybe the rust I saw on Enterprise is something other than CAR.
Kind of looks the same. Mine is just a mini
Novamac is rated by Purdue as very resistent to Scab, FireBlight, CAR, Rots…
I have one on B9 … espellar trained with 4 scaffolds.
I have never seen Scab here on any apple. Dont think we get that here in the south east.
My Novamac is 30 ft from a large red cedar… and has many more within 50 ft of it. At most some tiny red spots on leaves that did not affect it at all.
It is a FG4 apple tree and here starts blooming early April… and continues 3-4 weeks. It is nice and warm here 80s for most of its bloom… and plenty wet too.
It got fire blight here last spring… just like every other late blooming apple has. I ended up removing most of the two bottom scaffolds and removed several fruit spurs off the top scaffolds.
It survived… and produced some very nice apples. They ripen here first week of August.
I have seen one little spot of FB on my crab apple this week… on a limb tip. Have not found any on Novamac yet
Hoping that it builds up some resistance to it.
TNHunter
So you would recommend novamac, that’s encouraging… I still have scionwood I need to topwork into a multi grafted apple tree. But tomorrow have a movie with the wife and grands. Sunday i’m helping a neighbor take apart and load the bottom ring from a 30 foot diameter silo. He’s got a really awesome idea to make it into a walk in raised garden bed.
Here’s my novamac graft on m111, its got good clean leafs, again encouraging.
@JesusisLordandChrist … in addition to all I said earlier… my Novamac on B9 espellar is especially eager to fruit. Fruit buds form and blossoms happen very quick.
New scaffold branches that formed last year… have blossoms already.
I like a tree that is eager to fruit.
TNHunter
I grew Novamac for many years in my u pick orchard. I had gone through maybe a hundred early varieties trying to fill in my opening couple weeks. Novamac was completely free of scab for me but early apples are always a problem for me with Apple maggot and just finding ones that are good enough quality.
Customers wouldn’t pick the apple so I finally got rid of my trees. The other variety I was trying at the same picking time seemed to be a winner with customers, the Niagra mac. It has more flavor and texture HOWEVER it is not scab resistant. I have also had to replace several trees due to Anthracnose which is very bad here.