Winters_Lackey wrote:
"David Hare-Scott" wrote in
:

Winters_Lackey wrote:

Then today I got my replacement tree from Gurney's for the one
that died (a Goldrush). For some reason, they threw in an extra
free tree, a Pixie Crunch. Lovely apples, but the two I have are
impossible to keep totally free of rust because there are lots of
cedar trees on this block.

Have you guessed where I'm going? Yep, I took the tree to the
park and planted it. I am the guerilla gardener.

I don't know apples from apples...

It may just be a matter of good customer relations since one died
but unless you have other apples on your place or near your
property... you may need the other as a pollinator variety so your
favoured tree will set fruit or will fruit more abundantly.

I'd suggest checking it out ASAP.


There is a Liberty tree about a quarter of a mile from the new tree,
and that is a good pollinator for both Pixie Crunch and GoldRush.

You would be very lucky, usual practice is to plant the pollinator
next to the target. You are counting on a significant number of
bees visiting one then the other without a nest return in between.

If the tree flowers, but sets no fruit, that could be a plus for the
first couple of years. It will allow the tree to become established
before anyone realizes that it is a fruit tree. There are those who,
for silly reasons, have chosen not to plant fruit trees in the park.
Like I said, guerilla gardening.

One solution is to plant a pollinator in the little wooded are
nearby. I can do that pretty much for free, as I can grow the
pollinator from seed taken from the tree (a Liberty) that (I assume)
pollinates my two at home. I'm in this for the long haul. If this
thing doesn't have apples for the first few years--or even ever--no
loss. The tree was free.


Guerilla-schmozilla, the bees will take the shortest path between food and
home and only go further than the closest source of food when it is
exhausted. There is little chance of them cooperating by dutifully adopting
a triangular path to drop off some pollen where you want it along the way.
Planting the pollinator next to the target is to avoid this problem.

Apples are not generally true-breeding to the stock that is flowering, so
growing from seed will probably not give you the characteristics that you
want, that is the seedling may not be a good pollinator for your targets.
Apples are commonly reproduced from cuttings of the desired fruiting wood to
avoid this problem.

If you want to grow your own apples (not just apple trees) then planting
selected compatible grafted cultivars that suit the climate close together
is most likely give you a good result.

See here for good general information and a start on pollination issues:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple

D