Is the Royal Lee Cherry still under patent? I’ve done a search and can’t find any up to date info.
I planted a Minnie Royal and Royal Lee (from two different nurseries) a week ago. The Royal Lee has 2 of 3 branches with no buds. The main trunk also has no buds.
By no buds I mean each bud location does not have a dormant, swelling, or growing bud…whether from being rubbed off in handling or dessication?
I added a few chip bud grafts from the one branch that came with some leaves already (I was told it was a dormant tree… It wasn’t), but I don’t know if they will take.
So my thought was to try to find some scion wood. Can’t find so I assume it’s still under patent?
Alternatively I could graft another kind of low chill cherry IF I could find scions. No can do, at least when I looked. Of course the Minnie Royal still needs a pollinator.
I hate to lose a whole year… Even if the nursery honors it’s product, I will t get the replacement till next year I assume.
???
DWN lists it Royal Lee | Dave Wilson Nursery As patent #12417. Google’s patent search lists it as ‘expired.’ USPP12417P2 - Cherry tree named ‘Regal Lee’ - Google Patents I’m not a patent expert though.
2 Likes
Thanks… I did find it after some more searching.
I’m surprised I don’t see anyone selling scions for it…even if they are out of stock.
I suspect for many things that were recently patented, a nursery may not realize it has expired until a customer points it out and asks for scionwood. It would be hard for them to keep track of all the patent expiration dates.
3 Likes
It seems many nurseries fail to update patent status when they expire.
2 Likes
I managed to find a Royal Lee and a Royal Crimson from a NETX nursery… A much closer trip for shipping than California. They also come in 5 gallon soil as opposed to bare root. They are not dormant of course being in a much warmer climate at the nursery.
Another advantage is I don’t have to transplant right away since they are already on soil.
So I have my Royal Lee replacement if the other fails and a self-fertile Crimson to boot.
BTW Bob Wells Nursery just outside of Tyler, TX. We’ll see how the trees look upon arrival.
1 Like
As of today here are my little cherry trees I’m trying to grow in a place nowhere near where I should even be trying to (southern Louisiana, 9a).
Minnie Royal Cherry on Maxma from Groworganic planted 4.25.23. Great growth on this one.
Royal Lee and Royal Crimson from Bob Wells Nursery NETX, planted June 7th this year. On Mazzard, which I have now read stands no chance in this heat/humidity combination zone.
Lapins on Krymsk5 from Groworganic, planted March 3rd this year.
And finally another Royal Lee which is just about dead, from Tyty.
It only put a few leaves out. It arrived without any dormant buds on any of the visible nodes. The aforementioned Royal Lee was a replacement from another nursery because I knew the first one was failing.
