I think richer soil only becomes a liability when you can’t control irrigation in the 2 months or so leading up to harvest. I think it will lead to bigger fruit via cell division in early spring but once the soil dries out it won’t lead to bigger, more watery cells.
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I have had a big problem with Japanese beetles as well this year. A few trees were covered with them others nothing really at all. I put those bag traps out and that helps a lot. Especially around my peach trees. I also sprayed the trees and that helped a lot as well. The rain keeps coming and going so I needed those bag traps to have at least something out to try to keep them away from my trees.
What are bag traps? I’ve heard about them, but not sure what they are.
Yes the beetles hit a few apples, but not all of them, really hard like my Honeycrisp, Alkmene and a couple others. I have a large (>12ft) Winesap next to the Alkie and it has nary a problem with them. They’ve also hit my newly planted pluots pretty hard. Nasty buggers…
Sprectracide makes them and it uses a scent lure and a bag attached to a metal frame to trap them. Places like Home Depot, Lowe’s, or hardware stores usually carry them. Some places are sold out for the year because usually they are done being so active. For some reason these things are more active this year than I have ever seen. I have replaced my four traps three times so far, and they are not done yet.
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Hi, Could Anyone please tell me where I could buy a Freysburg apple tree please? Thank- you!
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I forgot to mention I prefer m111. Thanks again.
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Probably too late to buy any trees this time of the year. Freyberg isn’t too easy to find, I’ve only seen them sold by Cummins or maybe Trees of Antiquity. Cummins usually sells their trees on Geneva rootstocks, but some are on M rootstocks, TofA sells all of their apples on M111.
If you’re good at grafting, you may have to get some M111 rootstocks and graft Freyberg onto those.
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Thanks a lot for replying! Yes I will wait until next year! I did send a text to trees of antiquity to see if they could get the freysburg. I can’t graft.
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Just out of curiosity, I checked Cummins’ site, and they have their inventory out for next year. They do have Freyberg, but it’s on G935 rootstock, if you’re interested. Trees on G935 are smaller than M111, about 40% the size of a standard tree.
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Subdood TY for the heads up on cummins 2020 availability:grin:
. My bank account may not be so happy but hah. Too bad.
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Just went to look at Cummins sight and there already sold out of Aurora pear tree’s. Well probably for the best I already have to many but who here got any of them?
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This is not the time to look for fruit trees on line. August will be a better time when nuseries start to update their catalogs.
Those “sold out” could be back.
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Have you previously used any of the Geneva rootstocks? I’ve read around here that they aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.
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Here is one of the thread re. Geneva rootstocks.
Low genetic diversity of Geneva rootstocks and viruses.
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Like so many things, apple research is driven by the huge corporate farms. If the Geneva roots produce pretty apples in just 2 or 3 years from grafting…and are compatible for miles of stakes and wires and the commercial varieties grafted to them, that’s all they are really worried about.
The ‘little guys’ are doing the research…that’s you and me…when it comes to their strengths and shortcomings in all sorts of climates and situations.
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Im pretty much all geneva for apples, except for the trees i got from starks (mystery rootstock, they dont tell) . And i have gala on m26 and mac on something i cant remember.
Geneva wise. No complaints so far. I have one runty tree that im going to move, hoping the site is the issue. Its on g11. Got a burkittsville red in the same order on g11 and its a beast.
Keepsake on G41 is just planted, leafed out in a day.
My trees are young. My orchard has lagged … when life goes to hell, well so do yr trees.
In any case I hope G performs well 
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Yup. Truth.
How did Sansa turn out for you Scott?
Any rot issues?
Good question… it is gone but I neglected to log what happened and I can’t remember. It might have been a mis-ID, the stock I had top worked it on to had the stock start fruiting and that might have been the supposed-Sansa.
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