How about organza bags? these close very well on the stem.
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Bugs laid eggs through the organza material easily where fruit (inside) touch the bags. Have that happened a few times.
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My situation is likely quite different from yours, but with only the second crop in the cooler right now, I can say any bruised Goldrush get no rot from bruises. Also, some apples begin to rot if the stem breaks away from the fruit at picking, not GoldRush. Even stored into May.
Not conclusive, but suggestive.
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I recently had the opportunity to try Sundance apples for the first time, and I was very impressed. The apples were incredibly crisp and juicy, and they had a perfect balance of sweetness and tartness. I loved the flavor so much that I immediately added Sundance to my top five apple list.
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Iām going to have some nice Sundance scions this year if anyone is interested. A graft grew a great deal in both length and caliper. It will be available if it is on my list.
https://growingfruit.org/t/rosdonald-trade-list-2024/57877?u=rosdonald
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I had so few apples this year due to a late freeze that I tried to protect a handful of fruit with organza bags. I had bugs eating holes in those bags during the summer. Maybe japanese beetle, but I didnāt catch them in the act. The apples received some damage, but not as bad as if they had no bag at all. In some cases, there was no damage.
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This is surprising to me, as I see hornets trying to get to my figs inside organza bags, only to give up after a while, leaving the figs unscathed. Same with ants.
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I tried organza bags this year, first time. Kept bugs out, but I need bigger bags next time around. I had to cut half of them off the fruit. And Sundance is bigger than Gold Rush.
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If Sundance is so good, can I find one-- or do I have to graft a limb to find out if I like it?
For something originally discovered in 1972 and propagated starting in 1979, it has been a slow bloomer it seems.
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@BlueBerry Hurry- only 3 in stock:https://www.mehrabyannursery.com/shop/apple-trees/sundance-apple-tree/
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His trees are pretty good
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$47 for shipping.
Nonetheless, I ordered from him and got my shipment last Fridayā¦(package greatly abused by UPS I might add)ā¦Iāll be patient for some scions on that one sometime.
Thanks
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That tree is set up to split out at the junction of those three shoots. Iād remove all but the best shoot and train it upright. Then try to get scaffolds off that at good angles.
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Wow, thatās a lot. My shipping charge for 1 tree from them is $33, and Iām in VA.
I got everything that was coming in the fall except for the muscadines from Isonās that are to shipped late November. But I did prepare my holes in advance while it was dry so easy enough to slip in once they do come.
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My box measured 6 feetā¦probably explains the difference. Even so, they chopped off a lot of the top of my trees. (One cost same as three I thinkā¦partly reason I ordered more than one treeā¦to spread the cost per tree.)
I got a scion of and grafted Sudance last year. It grew to about 6ā tall this season. Hope to be able to taste it in not too many years!
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I just tied the tree up like that. The tree should pop back if I gently release it.
My question is, āSo this isnāt what people mean when they say, ābend the branchesā?ā That tree has been in the ground since 2017 and this has been all the growth I have gotten. No spurs. Grows in little tuffs at the top like it doesnāt get enough chill (possible).
Iāve tried notching it. I might try gashing it, because where I accidentally broke a branch off and stripped some bark on a different variety is where the buds were encouraged.
Itās this close to getting grafted overā¦