I’ve only had the trees in ground a few years so that could change. they were planted at the same time but are different varieties. generally once the tree puts down roots, our heavy clay holds them fast. these were planted on cardboard, mounded with soil then mulch, tied to a stake pounded down the middle. all may change when that stakes removed.
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I know a guy in WI who has 100s of trees, mainly on b118. He has very sandy soil (like beach sand, literally) and very few leaners.
The wind here is pretty steady it seems. 25-30 mph winds are weekly or nearly so.
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im lucky as im surrounded with mature pines and spruces with a raised hedgerow of mixed trees on the western side so i don’t get alot of wind here.
The Bud series apparently does not care for zones 8 and hotter. Get a lot of folks saying it runts out in the heat and wilts badly. Heard it on Bud 9 and 118. Bud 10 is too new to say yet.
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I’ve heard that as well.
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M.111 is much more vigorous than B.118 on my sandy Adirondack soil in Z4b. It seems more precocious as well. Last summer I began having issues with trees on B.118 flopping over in wind events, I’ve started staking them. I’ve only had one on M.111 require staking. I’m hoping the stakes will be temporary. I have 109 trees on B.118 and 120 on M.111.
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I can relate. 
This really made me laugh
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Zabergau Reinette maybe?
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Well, Melrose is the State apple of Ohio. Some orchards have it. Most of the do not grown them, for some reason.
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Yep, I know that Melrose is the State apple of Ohio. I’ve been curious about it if it is
thought to be good enough to be called a State apple . Probably would be similar to my Honeycrisp tree which tends to be unproductive here in the south. Seems to work okay as a pollinator for my triploids though. I guess.
Maybe its the thing about the chill hours. Have to be careful about that in the south.
As they say the curiosity killed the cat.
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I have heard bad things about Melrose. I know its the state apple, but I feel those sort of things are a bit outdated. Tastes change and I agree with one of the previous posters, I have yet to find any local orchards growing it here.
It is a triploid, so getting a decent fruit set could be a challenge I suppose. The only good thing I have read about it is it stores very well. Other than that I’ve read it can be mealy, thick skinned, rubbery, and very prone to disease.
It is a cross between Jonathan and Red Delicious, both of which in my opinion have serious drawbacks. Jonathan is highly susceptible to just about any disease that plagues apples, and Red Delicious… We needn’t go there. Lmao.
I’d grow Jonathan before I grew Melrose. Jonathan is actually available in my area and the apples are quite nice. Nice and juicy, quite sharp and acidic (which I like,) and not so crisp and coarse as many modern apples (which I like.)
Jonathan is also self fertile from what I’ve gathered. I had a tree but the deer killed it last year. I thought about getting another.
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Have you any experience with the Cortland apple tree? I ate a Cortland out of the grocery store and was quite impressed with it. It was big and juicy. Think that it is a McIntosh type.
Yeah I’ve only tasted it from a local orchard. I believe it is a McIntosh cross. I have not grown it. My cultivation experience with any fruit tree is limited to four years, my real forte has been cultivating roses for the past decade or so.
I did consider getting a Cortland apple tree this year also, but settled on Spartan for a Mac type. I also have a family apple tree that is my oldest with a large branch of McIntosh. That tree/branch has been healthy so far and looks like I will get a decent crop this year if it isn’t damaged by an upcoming freeze. Supposed to be 26 on Monday… My poor apricot tree in full bloom doesn’t stand a chance 
I hope the apple blossoms stay tight for a few more days.
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Cortland has long been one of my favorite apples. But it is tough to grow – disease prone.
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Melrose is not triploid. That is misinformation. I tasted Melrose apples when I was living in Columbus for a few years. It is tart and firm enough to be a good pie apple before storage. It does not have the flesh of a modern apple, but it was good enough that I bought a tree. I might graft Jonagold to it next year. I hope the climate here will ripen it properly. It has a great balance of sweet/tart/aromatics, but is triploid.
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There is a hobby orchardist right down the road from me Justin, his Jonagolds are always superb. Although that apple is a meal. They’re the size of a softball more often than not.
Are the Melrose apples softer, like a Mcintosh?
I never waited for them to get too soft. I ate them when they were still quite firm.
I guess what I mean, and I know it’s subjective, is I’m wondering if the texture is quite fine. I would consider something like honeycrisp to be rather coarse and crisp…
My apple tasting has been somewhat limited due to their not being a great source locally for heirloom apples, unless you have found someone around here that actually sells apples other than the common grocery store varieties.
Fuji… Gala… Pink Lady… Etc
All rather boring, I’m really looking to try something more exciting
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Hello. I have apples on B9, B118, M111, and G214. I live in an area with a lot of rain, then desert-dry, very hot summers, and I have a lot of clay. B9 has not done well for me, and unfortunately I bought a lot of it. The others appear to be fine.
A new thing I am doing in the lower orchard, which stays wetter longer, is to dig narrow approximately 1’ long trenches out away from the planting hole (usually 3, but as many as 6 for a big hole) and fill the trenches with compost. On the hill orchard, I am digging a narrow trench above the tree holes, and filling it with mulch.
I’m hoping this helps make better soil and drainage to hold some water away from the tree in the lower orchard, so the feeder roots don’t drown, and to release water onto feeder roots in the upper orchard. We’ll see how it works!
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So, I ended up getting a Jonagold on G.11.
I am so curious about trying as many rootstock, varieties, etc…
Now I want to put one of my apple trees in a corner where my porch and porch steps meet, so this space is fairly restrictive. I originally intended to put Liberty on G11 here and train to as a very informal espalier, but Liberty was out of stock on G11 so I chose Jonagold. I know they are very very different, but this is more just an experimental training idea for me.
However, I have realized Jonagold is a triploid and that triploid are inherently strong growing plants. Have I made a poor choice? Will G11 dwarf Jonagold enough to utilize this space and my idea? I would really like to contain it sort of like a tall spindle, quite narrow around 4-5’ wide. I don’t mind it getting tall, but if it gets much more than 5-6ft wide it would begin to be a nuisance.
What do you guys think of this idea? I can snap a photo of the spot in mind.
I also have Liberty coming on M26 as well as Dayton and Williams Pride. Are any of these perhaps better choices? All three on M26, which as I understand is not as dwarfing as G11.