I purchased 10 OHxF97 rootstocks from fedco, end of season sale (I couldn’t resist the price). They budded in transit, when I opened the box the buds were white. I potted them and set them in the shade and slowly moved them to full sun a little each day. They are fully acclimated now and growing well. I plan of grafting onto them in March, with a couple varieties I have established in the mother orchard, moonglow, sunrise, Bartlet and an unknown variety. I would like to purchase some scionwood for other varieties.
I have 2 questions…
The the following statements true for OHXF97? I’m in zone 6B
“OHXF97 Good anchorage & vigor. Induced early heavy production. Resistant to pear decline and fireblight. It is a superior rootstock for vigorous pear trees. Hardy and resilient to cold.”
What other varieties are good for OHXF97? I would like a red pear variety. Thinking maybe Clapps Favorite Red? But I’m new to orcharding.
OHx97 makes a big tree. Be sure to give them space.
I’d second the recommendation of Harrow Delight. I have two of them, one on OHx97 and one on OHx87, and they are both precocious and prolific. And very tasty.
I have a Harrow Sweet as well. I has grown well, flowered profusely, but produced very few fruit. Is it finicky about pollinators?
My Harrow Sweet (assuming it is properly labeled) has a very interesting growth pattern. On most pears, the scaffolds tend to be very upright. On Harrow Sweet, the branches grow at rough 90 degrees from the trunk.
I have Harrow Sweet tree on OHxF 97. The growth habit seems more spready than upright.
Harrow Sweet is very precocious. It flowered in year 2 after planting and every year since. At the beginning, I only had Korean Giant and 20th Century, both Asian pears, as pollination partners. Fruit set is no issue.
Never goes biennial (but I do thin them pretty well). I grafted a stick of Harrow Sweet to a Potomac tree. This grafted flowered the next year. It definitely is precocious.
@kokopelli5A
Harvest Queen grafted 5 years ago is slow to set fruit. It flowered last year and this year and is located among many pears. I don’t think it sets any fruit.
Hi Luis. I said that because those are the two pears I’ve grown that have impressed most. They are small but delicious, fragrant, complex in flavor -Dana’s Hovey in particular is spicy with a notable overtone of vanilla- and have impressed others in this group who have tried them. I hope you get a chance to try them yourself.
@mamuang – Thanks. That suggest that I have a pollination issue. Flowering has never been an issue, only fruiting.
I planted a Warren right next to it at the same time; it has also bloomed profusely and it currently has a decent (not enormous) crop. There is also a very nature legacy pear (winter storage type) growing ~100 yards away.across the road to the north. That tree always bears a good crop. Finally, my Harrow Delight is ~60-70 yards away toward the west. That tree is loaded, as it was last year. I had assumed that the Warren, legacy pear, and Harrow Delight would be enough. (:
More recently I also planted Keiffer ~40 yards away but this tree is still young.
Have you noticed fruitlets forming but dropping off? My Harrow Sweet were affected by pear scab this year resulting in a lot dropping. It actually worked out by thinning the abundant crop to something more manageable for the tree.
No, there were never any fruitlets. I don’t see any disease. We did have low temps in the mid 30s for a couple nights but no frost. That weather didn’t seem severe enough to cause problems. My two Harrow Delights and one Warren were not affected.
We’ve got plenty of bees here. Two neighbors have hives.
So I’m still perplexed. Warren flowered more or less simultaneously just a few feet away. If HS is not picky about pollinators, I don’t know what to think.
That’s interesting. Mine is probably pollinated by later blooming Asian pears in my yard like Shinsui, or the staggered bloom of Hosui, and Drippin Honey.
I’ve also got Shinko but it’s a little far away and my impression is that it flowers a bit before Harlow Sweet.
I’m gonna do some serious research on this issue during the winter, then if it makes sense either plant a tree or graft some branches of a good pollinator
Edit: Orange Pippin lists both Shinko and Harrow Delight as as suitable pollinators. So I’ll graft both of those.
Harrow sweet sounds very interestingly delicious I already have a moonglow and bartlet for pollinators. Red Clapps Favorite is also a pollinator for Harrow sweet so I think these are the two new varieties I’ll graft onto OHxF97 in March.
I have a huge deer and rabbit problem around here. Although it’s true, both are a good source of protein and pretty tasty. It’s also true, both can be tree killers. I have to stand up 13 foot of woven wire along with two 6 tee-posts and also add a trunk guard on every fruit tree I plant. That and along with my dog, seems to be working pretty well so far.
I would rather much have a shorter tree for easy of picking. But I really need to go with standards / semi-standard root stocks.
I already have a moonglow and bartlet for pollinators. Red Clapps Favorite is also a pollinator for Harrow sweet so I think these are the two new varieties I’ll graft onto OHxF97 in March.