Anyone still on the fence about the honesty of Willis and TyTy can read from over a decade ago… but both companies are thriving…
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I only ordered once from them and got a true to type Saijo persimmon tree. I guess I lucked out because it’s healthy and fruitful.
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Glad to hear that, I also got a saijo persimmon along with a satsuma and santa rosa plums, and a couple of pomegranates. Only the satsuma didn’t make it, but I won’t know if the rest are true to types until years from now.
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I ordered two sierra beauty apple trees from Willis Orchard for spring 2020 shipping. Their prices were good. One I planted on in a bad spot and I haven’t been watering it, but the other go put in my yard so it gets pampered. Both the trees I got were nice and big, and looked like good quality. They at least didn’t have weird bends like the stuff I’ve gotten from Cummins nursery, or burr knots.
They’ve never bloomed though. I think they might be struggling with lack of chill too, which that variety isn’t supposed to do (but who can say, it hasn’t been tested here). So I can’t say yet if Willis Orchards is bad or not, but they have sent me some of the highest quality apple trees I’ve gotten so far.
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Only thing I find on the Sierra Beauty apple is 700-800 chill hrs.
Not knowing your location in central Texas (it’s a damn big state and of course you gain elevation going west), it’s hard not to say you aren’t getting the chill hours needed if it isn’t even blooming.
Apples seem to bloom at least some just the year after planting bare root if they are happy chill wise.
Maybe you can top work your trees to add different varieties.
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I usually get about 800 chill hours where I am at, though last couple of years it’s been around 600. Part of the problem the first couple of years is how I pruned it I suspect. It just doesn’t seem to want to leaf out either, but that could be chill related.
I’m going to keep one branch I think, but graft in some better varieties.
The wickson crab bloomed it’s heart out this year…
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Were they half price yet?
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I ordered 4 pecan trees from Willis about 5 years ago. They arrived on Friday and I planted them on Sunday. There was a problem, there were only 3 trees in the package. Moreland pecan was missing. I promptly reported the missing tree via email and got a 5th degree response basically saying I was lying to get a free tree. I replied that I also run a nursery selling tomato and pepper plants and know that I make mistakes occasionally. I stated that I run my business honestly and correct any problems with orders which is what any ethical nursery does. They eventually sent me a replacement tree labeled as Moreland. Unfortunately, the first 3 trees I received never opened the first bud. The Moreland tree grew but was killed by a deer rubbing it.
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Looks to be one greenhouse, everything field planted and a shipping/packing house.
Makes sense that they send alot of folks the wrong stuff…as they probably dont have half of the things they list on their site.
That’s what you see in Texas where chill hours aren’t met. I grew apples in Amarillo for 30 years. Chilling their is adequate for everything. There is some delay in bloom and leafing out compared to northern climates. But here in Alpine, 400 miles south of Amarillo, leafing out can be delayed for two months on varieties like Honeycrisp. They say our chill is about 600 hours. But it’s not enough for about half the apple varieties I’ve tried.
And yet I have a nice lady at Willis still looking for colt rootstock for me and sending me an email a few weeks after my request.
So it’s a mixed bag. The person you may be speak to often may have nothing to do with how the company runs or handles their merch.
It’s the world we live in. Expectations often exceed reality.
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Yeah, that’s what I kind of figured. I’m going to leave a couple of branches as they were and bud the rest. Akane and William’s Pride fruited for me, as did Reverend Morgan. I might move one of those there or try something new.
I know this is a side topic, but I’m surprised you don’t get more chill in Alpine. Not counting 2017 and the last couple of years, Fredericksburg (TX) will consistently get above 800, and we aren’t more southern than ya’ll are.
Fredericksburg may average 800 long term. But only by certain measures, ie hours below 45. By the Utah model usually much less. Because in most of central and southern TX the chill we do get is low quality. Here we’re either to cold, below 32 at night, or too warm, above 60 by day, most days all winter. It’s a very rare day that we stay between 34 and 54, Utah chilling range, for 24 hours straight. Clouds also help with chilling by moderating nightly lows and daily highs. Not much of that here. We get more hours below 45 than you but too much below 34.
The peach growers in your area are on threads and needles during Dec and January. If you don’t get chilling then it’s over. Too many years that happens and likely more in the future.