Ughh. In a moment of weakness I ordered a Pink Popcorn Blueberry last night. I’m hoping the birds might not notice the berries and will just leave it alone.
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I got 1 pear on mine second year on the ground on 87. I started pulling the limbs down right away. This year, 3rd in ground it has hundreds of blooms right now and blakes pride has a few, 2nd year also on 87. My 2 year magnus has none but mabye next year. I would defenetly recommend pulling the limbs down to induce earlier fruiting
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Thanks, Jason. Wow that’s quick for a pear, what did that one pear taste like? I know one fruit this soon prob won’t be a good sample, but was wondering. Where did you get the tree?
ACN sells Blake’s Pride, but were out of stock when I ordered. I was considering one of those based on some good reviews. I also mulled Potomac and Shenandoah, but settled on the HS.
How big has your HS gotten?
It was ok, can’t judge by first year. The trees came from adams county nursery. I have a friend with a large orchard he grows many varieties, his harrow sweet are good, but you must have magnus. It is in my opinion the best of the probably dozen or more varieties of European pear he grows. In fact to me by far the best. I really only have the other ones to pollinate my magnus or Magness, however you actually spell it.
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Just planted my Abbe Fetel pear. Very, very nice tree, very well shaped. Still trying to find a Beurre Superfin pear, but think I will have to wait until next year. Can’t find it anywhere.
Patty S.
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Patty,
I ordered Superfin scion from Singing Tree this year.
Thanks, Mamuang, I’ll check to see if they still have any scion wood left.
Patty S.
Patty, I was absolutely sick over losing my Abbe Fetel last fall. Due to no rain all spring four of my five new trees died. There was only so much water I could haul down to my orchard. Arboreum had Beurre Superfin, you might ask them. 
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I like that analogy! Mostly because it is so true. If I had a nickle for every time I went to a nursery site just to “look around” and ended up buying things, I’d be rich! And just so you know you aren’t alone, I just blew another $160 at Henry Fields on a few trees and a lot of various Berries. Who said it’s too late to order? In fact, it is very likely that I may even buy a couple more trees this spring. Yes, I know its April…but you don’t tell an alcoholic he can’t drink because it is too late in the day! haha
BTW…I really was impressed with my contender peach tree this year. It really was the very last peach in my orchard of about 12 varieties of peaches to bloom, and this year was the perfect example of what blooming just a few days later can mean. I lost 80% of my peaches to frost, but because contender was just a few days (actually almost a week) later, most of its blooms were still closed and did survive! I also think the contender peach tastes very good.
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Good to hear your Contender fared better in the big freeze. I look forward to getting ours and other trees in the ground. Our three apples, Suncrisp, Alkmene, and Zestar came in the mail today from Cummins. They look good, the Suncrisp has some nice little branches on them, but that’s how I ordered it, feathered.
They’ll get planted tomorrow, before the next rainstorm rolls thru tomorrow night. It’s been very wet here for March.
Our four blueberry and two gooseberry plants from Indiana Berry are due here tomorrow, and then our Blushingstar peach and Maxine pear from Stark’s are supposed to be here Fri.
AND THEN, our Romance cherry twigs and gooseberry plant from Honeyberryusa is due next week. Haven’t got an itinerary on the Contender and Harrow Sweet pear from ACN yet.
I’ll try to get some pics before and after planting.
AND, I need to get our veggies started in our indoor planter cells this weekend.
So, very busy goings on here for the next couple weeks. Exciting, but kind of overwhelming.
I’m pretty sure I’m done ordering stuff. Pretty much. My wife made a tasty topping out of store bought raspberries, so I might to pick up a few of those plants. Maybe Lowe’s, or Stark’s or IB. Maybe.
Update: Just checked my Stark’s account, my two trees are in transit, due tomorrow! Pear, peach and berries tomorrow, it’s Fruitmas! 
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I only made two orders this year. One from Vaughn Nursery for peaches which I got first week of March and one from Raintree Nursery for a WhiteGold cherry on Gisela 5. I also got 2 (wish now I would have ordered more) Malus fusca (swamp crabapple) to plant in my backyard swamp as a trial for this western species in the Midwest and to really test how water-tolerant they are. I haven’t pulled out the roots yet, but they are very well packed!
The Raintree cherry is the biggest mail order tree I have got yet. And the M. fusca are pencil size, perfect for grafting to.
I’m still hemming and hawing on whether to make a purchase of raspberries from Indiana Berry.
My Abbe Fetel just showed up today from Raintree. 3/4" caliper, monster roots, and well branched. Hope the climate doesn’t kill it. Trying it a zone north of recommended.
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Well, Mr Fed Ex delivered my Stark’s order this morning. The Blushingstar peach is huge, almost a full 1" thick. The Starking Delicious (Maxine) pear looks to be about 1/2" caliper. Roots look OK.
So, today I’ll be out there planting these two plus, the three apples we got yesterday. I’ll post some pics soon.
The berries from Indiana Berry should be here today as well.
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Some pics of the trees we got the last couple days.
Apples from Cummins, from left to right: Alkmene, Suncrisp, Zestar
From Stark’s, from left, Maxine pear, Blushingstar peach
Roots on the apples, very nice
Roots on the pear and peach, got trimmed a bit much, IMO.
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Its really fun reading you “goings-on”, partly because they so closely match my own! I, too, need to be getting my veggie plants started, I’ve just planted new trees and gooseberries, and its also been wet here! Speaking of wet, I’m worried about fireblight since- from what I’ve read- a wet spring can make it a lot worse.
That photo that has the 2 trees in it made me feel a little better about the trees I got from PV. It surprises me still that they can cut so much of the roots away and trees still make it, but apparently they do! Good luck with yours.
How would you describe the flavor and texture of your magness? I grafted it last year on a franken tree and again this spring on an ohxf 87 rootstock
Mine hasn’t fruited yet,just 2nd year in ground. My friend has mature trees and that is where I always get mine. Ime not good at describing flavors, but no gritt very sweet and just excellent flavor, the best of the probable 20 or so varieties he grows. At the various places he sells his fruit people come and ask for magnus, mostly repeat costumers. He always sells out of them quickly. If they taste the same as grown in your area I don’t see how you would be disappointed
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Now just to wait for fruit…
Well, just came in from outside for a bite to eat. I finished getting the apples in the ground, that was a chore! Still have to plant the pear and peach this evening, want to get them in the ground before storms roll thru tonight.
While I was digging the holes, the UPS truck rolled up the drive. My Indiana Berry order came in. The blueberries look pretty good, but wow, the two gooseberry “plants” look more like little thorny twigs. Very disappointed with the looks of them. Can you or anyone else comment on the size of their GB plants from vendors, as far as size are concerned? Hope they’re super-vigorous growers.
I’ll post some pics of the planted trees and berry plants later this evening.
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I got an email from UPS on Mon. that said Cummins sent me my trees and I would have them by Wed. evening. That was ok with me but my jaw and eyeballs hit and then hit again the keyboard when the weight of the package said 1 Pound! I received the box last night and knew it couldn’t weigh 1 pound even though the label on it also said such. I ordered a Paragon Pear #2 grade on OHF 87, Harrow Sweet #1 grade on OHF 87 and a Pixie Crunch Apple #1 grade on G.41. Best tree I got was Pixie Crunch and the worst I felt was Harrow Sweet since a #1 grade was suppose to be feathered and it was a whip.
Paragon Pear Height: 41" Caliper:5/8"
Harrow Sweet Pear Height:45" Caliper:5/8"
Pixie Crunch Apple Height:43" Caliper:5/8"
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