So one day my 4 yr old is eating an apple and asks my wife about seeds &
such. So they decide to do a little expirement and plant the seed. Low and
behold a seedling sprouts up and they cherish it and nuture it, etc, etc. 5
months later and the thing is only about 5 inches tall, but has a bunch of
leaves on it. They've got it in a little container(we live in Ohio).

Thing is, they both think they are going to plant it outside next spring and
my wife seems to think that in a few years we'll have an apple tree. And of
course she is telling my son this. Meanwhile, I'm skeptical of the whole
thing. First of all, we don't know what kind of apple it was, we don't know
if it'll survive in Ohio and we certainly don't know if it will bear fruit.
Doesn't their have to be some cross pollination or something for a tree to
bare fruit?

What's the fture of this 5inch apple tree?

In article ,
"K. Kly" wrote:

So one day my 4 yr old is eating an apple and asks my wife about seeds &
such. So they decide to do a little expirement and plant the seed. Low and
behold a seedling sprouts up and they cherish it and nuture it, etc, etc. 5
months later and the thing is only about 5 inches tall, but has a bunch of
leaves on it. They've got it in a little container(we live in Ohio).

Thing is, they both think they are going to plant it outside next spring and
my wife seems to think that in a few years we'll have an apple tree. And of
course she is telling my son this. Meanwhile, I'm skeptical of the whole
thing. First of all, we don't know what kind of apple it was, we don't know
if it'll survive in Ohio and we certainly don't know if it will bear fruit.
Doesn't their have to be some cross pollination or something for a tree to
bare fruit?

What's the fture of this 5inch apple tree?

I'd purchase an Heirloom variety of your choice. This as backup. BUT
I'd also plant the seeds of a few different apples you have eaten. May
have to expose them to cold temps I don't know the particulars. But,
given an inquisitive for year old I'd go for it.

Johnny Appleseed !

Bill

--
Garden Shade Zone 5 S Jersey USA in a Japanese Jungle Manner.39.6376 -75.0208
This article is posted under fair use rules in accordance with
Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, and is strictly for the educational
and informative purposes. This material is distributed without profit.
Moose I'm trying to understand why Kamikaze pilots wear helments?

K. Kly wrote:

So one day my 4 yr old is eating an apple and asks my wife about seeds &
such. So they decide to do a little expirement and plant the seed. Low and
behold a seedling sprouts up and they cherish it and nuture it, etc, etc. 5
months later and the thing is only about 5 inches tall, but has a bunch of
leaves on it. They've got it in a little container(we live in Ohio).

Thing is, they both think they are going to plant it outside next spring and
my wife seems to think that in a few years we'll have an apple tree. And of
course she is telling my son this. Meanwhile, I'm skeptical of the whole
thing. First of all, we don't know what kind of apple it was, we don't know
if it'll survive in Ohio and we certainly don't know if it will bear fruit.
Doesn't their have to be some cross pollination or something for a tree to
bare fruit?

What's the fture of this 5inch apple tree?



I would plant it outside *now* and give it a little bit of protection
this winter. The dormancy should be good for it.

The fruit will be edible, but probably not very good. But you can
always graft a good variety (or 2 or 3) onto your tree *after* you know
that it's awful. ;-) It also might be a good cider or jelly apple even
if it's not good for eating.

It may take 10 years to get any fruit. You'll start getting fruit in 2
or 3 years if you buy a 1 year old semi-dwarf tree.

Good luck!

-Bob

"K. Kly" wrote in message
...
So one day my 4 yr old is eating an apple and asks my wife about seeds &
such. So they decide to do a little expirement and plant the seed. Low
and
behold a seedling sprouts up and they cherish it and nuture it, etc, etc.
5
months later and the thing is only about 5 inches tall, but has a bunch of
leaves on it. They've got it in a little container(we live in Ohio).

Thing is, they both think they are going to plant it outside next spring
and
my wife seems to think that in a few years we'll have an apple tree. And
of
course she is telling my son this. Meanwhile, I'm skeptical of the whole
thing. First of all, we don't know what kind of apple it was, we don't
know
if it'll survive in Ohio and we certainly don't know if it will bear
fruit.
Doesn't their have to be some cross pollination or something for a tree to
bare fruit?

What's the fture of this 5inch apple tree?

It is my understanding that all apples grown for eating come from grafted
trees. The apples do no pass on a clone of their own genes and the apples
that come from seeds are inferior. "Johnny Appleseed" apparently planted
trees to bear fruit intended for the production of hard cider. You may have
a tree from the seed, but it could be one that is prone to disease and
produce inferior fruit.

--------------
http://www.pollinator.com/appleseeds_faq.htm

Apples From Seeds FAQ

In a message dated 10/6/00 2:55:16 PM Eastern Daylight Time, name
withheld writes:

can anyone tell me about planting apple seeds? I saved seeds from
especially
good apples this year, that were growing nearby. Do I need to chill the
seeds, or do anything before planting them? Should I pot them this year, or
wait till spring? If I should wait, how should I store the seeds till then?


Before going on with this, I want you to first ask you to make a choice:
1. Do I want to spend many years of my life looking for that "needle in a
haystack," trying to develop new and worthwhile apple varieties? OR
2. Do I want to do something educational for the kids, but don't care about
the end results (in terms of fruit) OR
3. Do I want to raise fruit in my backyard? Your saving from "especially
good apples" makes me think that this is your real desire.

If your answer is 1: Plan on planting large quantities of seeds (and
having the place to grow them). Apples that are grown from seed bear little
resemblance to the parent (the fruit that you ate), they are crossed between
varieties and the tendency is for them to revert to apple types that are not
so good for our purposes. Consider that the "daddy" for your apple may well
be a crab apple, as these are widely planted in orchards for pollenizers.
Chances are that your apple, after all the years and the work of growing it
will be only suitable for food for wildlife, or maybe to add to the mix for
cider to give it some zing. You may get one in a thousand seedlings that is
a really good apple, and one in a million that is worth propagating as a new
variety. If you are interested in developing new apple varieties, then
consider joining the North American Fruit Explorers.

If your answer is 2: Chill your apple seeds for at least six weeks in a
baggie of damp peat in the fridge. Then plant them on a sunny windowsill, in
paper cups for the kids to watch, or outside in the spring. Throw them away
when done.

If your answer is 3: Buy good nursery stock on dwarf or semidwarf stock
from a good nursery like Cummins Nursery: It is well worth the investment.

If you grow from seeds, you will wait 6-10 years to get a serious crop of
apples that you may well find to be worthless. If you grow from good stock,
properly cared for and pollinated, you should have a decent crop of quality
apples in three to four years. I have planted apples on full dwarf stock and
had a few apples the year I planted them. Cummins Nursery will also help you
come up with compatible pollenizer pairs (never plant lone apple trees,
unless you have lots of blooming crab apples in the neighborhood).

Seedlings and grafts on seedlings have a major disadvantage of being huge
trees. Consider yourself at age 60 or 70 trying to climb a 20 foot ladder
with a picking bag, and you will see the wisdom of trees that do not need a
ladder. Take a delightful look at "Gene's Backyard Orchard" to see what can
be done.

Finally, you can find a WEALTH of info on fruit growing thru The
Pollination Home Page. Check on home horticulture for a lot of links, even
how to grow fruit organically....

On Mon, 19 Sep 2005 18:51:18 GMT, "Vox Humana"
wrote:



It is my understanding that all apples grown for eating come from grafted
trees. The apples do no pass on a clone of their own genes and the apples
that come from seeds are inferior. "Johnny Appleseed" apparently planted
trees to bear fruit intended for the production of hard cider. You may have
a tree from the seed, but it could be one that is prone to disease and
produce inferior fruit.


It may be inferior, or it may not. The tree I have, Dorset Golden, is
listed as a chance seedling found in Bermuda. Good apples and very
low chilling requirements.

The tree will probably be inferior, but it may be superior, no way to
tell without trying.

fun to grow your own, as long as you have reasonable expectations.

I'd say, if you have the space to spare, go for it.

Charles wrote:
On Mon, 19 Sep 2005 18:51:18 GMT, "Vox Humana"
wrote:



It is my understanding that all apples grown for eating come from grafted
trees. The apples do no pass on a clone of their own genes and the apples
that come from seeds are inferior. "Johnny Appleseed" apparently planted
trees to bear fruit intended for the production of hard cider. You may have
a tree from the seed, but it could be one that is prone to disease and
produce inferior fruit.



It may be inferior, or it may not. The tree I have, Dorset Golden, is
listed as a chance seedling found in Bermuda. Good apples and very
low chilling requirements.

The tree will probably be inferior, but it may be superior, no way to
tell without trying.

fun to grow your own, as long as you have reasonable expectations.

I'd say, if you have the space to spare, go for it.

That's the fun part about gardening--the experiments!

Rob
http://www.hammerandsaw.com

In article t,
says...
Charles wrote:
On Mon, 19 Sep 2005 18:51:18 GMT, "Vox Humana"
wrote:



It is my understanding that all apples grown for eating come from grafted
trees. The apples do no pass on a clone of their own genes and the apples
that come from seeds are inferior. "Johnny Appleseed" apparently planted
trees to bear fruit intended for the production of hard cider. You may have
a tree from the seed, but it could be one that is prone to disease and
produce inferior fruit.



It may be inferior, or it may not. The tree I have, Dorset Golden, is
listed as a chance seedling found in Bermuda. Good apples and very
low chilling requirements.

The tree will probably be inferior, but it may be superior, no way to
tell without trying.

fun to grow your own, as long as you have reasonable expectations.

I'd say, if you have the space to spare, go for it.

That's the fun part about gardening--the experiments!

Rob
http://www.hammerandsaw.com


Yup, six years ago I stuck some seeds from a citrus I was eating
in a pot of soil. People said they probably wouldn't germanate.

Two came up. People here locally said the sprouts probably
wouldn't last long. One has survived, transplanted into a 22 inch pot.

Then people said it probably would never bloom and even if it did it
would more 'n likely be sterile and not produce any fruit. This year it
finally bloomed for the first time and has about 2 dozen citrus on it
up to an inch and a half across. Now I'm getting " The fruit will
probably taste like crap " from them. We'll see, so far the nay sayers
are batting zero.

You may be wondering why I keep saying citrus. To tell the truth, I
plumb forgot what type of citrus it was I was eating when I stuck the
seeds in the ground. I do remember thinking it was a most excellent
fruit, which is why I stuck the seeds in an unused pot. Now I've had
months of expectation anticipating how they're going to taste.

You just can't buy entertainment like this. Some friends even have a
lottery going as to what it's going to be.

Who said gardening is boring?

Bill who was privledged to see a most excellent rainbow this
evening while enjoying the fragrances wafting off his Sweet Autumn
Clematis and Angels Trumpet, living la vida loca.
Waves Hi to Maddy

I see this kind of question every so often on this board, and I should just have a standard reply on
file to answer it. Anybody who wastes their time with growing
apples from seed is either an experimental station planting hundreds of them with the
hope that something unusual emerges, or people like yourself who spend years nurturing this tree,
only to find out that the resulting apples taste like (you know what).
It's a genetic thing with the resultant tree not getting it's genes from the original tree,
but something from a previous generation of that tree, which mostly does not resemble it's parent.
Stone fruits have a better chance of reproducing from seed, but
even that is chancy. You have as much chance of getting a good apple as winning big in the lotto.
You can buy a small tree for as little as 15 to 20 dollars and you then know exactly what variety
you have. Most apple trees require another 'malus'
or apple family tree to pollinate for fruit, although some like Yellow Delicious are
self fertile. If you have a crab apple tree, that works. If your neighbors have any of
those trees, that also would probably work.

Sherwin D.

"K. Kly" wrote:

So one day my 4 yr old is eating an apple and asks my wife about seeds &
such. So they decide to do a little expirement and plant the seed. Low and
behold a seedling sprouts up and they cherish it and nuture it, etc, etc. 5
months later and the thing is only about 5 inches tall, but has a bunch of
leaves on it. They've got it in a little container(we live in Ohio).

Thing is, they both think they are going to plant it outside next spring and
my wife seems to think that in a few years we'll have an apple tree. And of
course she is telling my son this. Meanwhile, I'm skeptical of the whole
thing. First of all, we don't know what kind of apple it was, we don't know
if it'll survive in Ohio and we certainly don't know if it will bear fruit.
Doesn't their have to be some cross pollination or something for a tree to
bare fruit?

What's the fture of this 5inch apple tree?

Citrus ain't Apples, so why lead the poor guy astray. If you really want a good tasting apple,
growing from seed is not the way to go.

Sherwin D.

Bill wrote:

In article t,
says...
Charles wrote:
On Mon, 19 Sep 2005 18:51:18 GMT, "Vox Humana"
wrote:



It is my understanding that all apples grown for eating come from grafted
trees. The apples do no pass on a clone of their own genes and the apples
that come from seeds are inferior. "Johnny Appleseed" apparently planted
trees to bear fruit intended for the production of hard cider. You may have
a tree from the seed, but it could be one that is prone to disease and
produce inferior fruit.



It may be inferior, or it may not. The tree I have, Dorset Golden, is
listed as a chance seedling found in Bermuda. Good apples and very
low chilling requirements.

The tree will probably be inferior, but it may be superior, no way to
tell without trying.

fun to grow your own, as long as you have reasonable expectations.

I'd say, if you have the space to spare, go for it.

That's the fun part about gardening--the experiments!

Rob
http://www.hammerandsaw.com


Yup, six years ago I stuck some seeds from a citrus I was eating
in a pot of soil. People said they probably wouldn't germanate.

Two came up. People here locally said the sprouts probably
wouldn't last long. One has survived, transplanted into a 22 inch pot.

Then people said it probably would never bloom and even if it did it
would more 'n likely be sterile and not produce any fruit. This year it
finally bloomed for the first time and has about 2 dozen citrus on it
up to an inch and a half across. Now I'm getting " The fruit will
probably taste like crap " from them. We'll see, so far the nay sayers
are batting zero.

You may be wondering why I keep saying citrus. To tell the truth, I
plumb forgot what type of citrus it was I was eating when I stuck the
seeds in the ground. I do remember thinking it was a most excellent
fruit, which is why I stuck the seeds in an unused pot. Now I've had
months of expectation anticipating how they're going to taste.

You just can't buy entertainment like this. Some friends even have a
lottery going as to what it's going to be.

Who said gardening is boring?

Bill who was privledged to see a most excellent rainbow this
evening while enjoying the fragrances wafting off his Sweet Autumn
Clematis and Angels Trumpet, living la vida loca.
Waves Hi to Maddy

Bill wrote:
In article t,
says...

Charles wrote:

On Mon, 19 Sep 2005 18:51:18 GMT, "Vox Humana"
wrote:




It is my understanding that all apples grown for eating come from grafted
trees. The apples do no pass on a clone of their own genes and the apples
that come from seeds are inferior. "Johnny Appleseed" apparently planted
trees to bear fruit intended for the production of hard cider. You may have
a tree from the seed, but it could be one that is prone to disease and
produce inferior fruit.



It may be inferior, or it may not. The tree I have, Dorset Golden, is
listed as a chance seedling found in Bermuda. Good apples and very
low chilling requirements.

The tree will probably be inferior, but it may be superior, no way to
tell without trying.

fun to grow your own, as long as you have reasonable expectations.

I'd say, if you have the space to spare, go for it.

That's the fun part about gardening--the experiments!

Rob
http://www.hammerandsaw.com



Yup, six years ago I stuck some seeds from a citrus I was eating
in a pot of soil. People said they probably wouldn't germanate.

Two came up. People here locally said the sprouts probably
wouldn't last long. One has survived, transplanted into a 22 inch pot.

Then people said it probably would never bloom and even if it did it
would more 'n likely be sterile and not produce any fruit. This year it
finally bloomed for the first time and has about 2 dozen citrus on it
up to an inch and a half across. Now I'm getting " The fruit will
probably taste like crap " from them. We'll see, so far the nay sayers
are batting zero.

You may be wondering why I keep saying citrus. To tell the truth, I
plumb forgot what type of citrus it was I was eating when I stuck the
seeds in the ground. I do remember thinking it was a most excellent
fruit, which is why I stuck the seeds in an unused pot. Now I've had
months of expectation anticipating how they're going to taste.

You just can't buy entertainment like this. Some friends even have a
lottery going as to what it's going to be.

Who said gardening is boring?

Bill who was privledged to see a most excellent rainbow this
evening while enjoying the fragrances wafting off his Sweet Autumn
Clematis and Angels Trumpet, living la vida loca.
Waves Hi to Maddy


Citrus often *does* grow true from seed. Sometimes citrus seeds will
grow 2 plants instead of one, and I've read that one of those will be a
clone of the mother plant. I don't know if it's the larger or the
smaller sprout, but if you only keep seedlings from seeds that grow 2
shoots, and you seperate and keep both seedlings, at least 50% should be
good.

Apples never grow true from seed, and seldom are very good, but at least
an apple tree that you grew from a seed will be *unique* :-)

Best regards,
Bob

In article ,
says...
Citrus ain't Apples, so why lead the poor guy astray.

Never said it was. The point was nothing ventured, nothing gained.

If you really want a good tasting apple,
growing from seed is not the way to go.

And your 100% certain of that?


Sherwin D.



Bill

In article , says...
Bill wrote:
In article t,
says...

Charles wrote:

On Mon, 19 Sep 2005 18:51:18 GMT, "Vox Humana"
wrote:




It is my understanding that all apples grown for eating come from grafted
trees. The apples do no pass on a clone of their own genes and the apples
that come from seeds are inferior. "Johnny Appleseed" apparently planted
trees to bear fruit intended for the production of hard cider. You may have
a tree from the seed, but it could be one that is prone to disease and
produce inferior fruit.



It may be inferior, or it may not. The tree I have, Dorset Golden, is
listed as a chance seedling found in Bermuda. Good apples and very
low chilling requirements.

The tree will probably be inferior, but it may be superior, no way to
tell without trying.

fun to grow your own, as long as you have reasonable expectations.

I'd say, if you have the space to spare, go for it.

That's the fun part about gardening--the experiments!

Rob
http://www.hammerandsaw.com



Yup, six years ago I stuck some seeds from a citrus I was eating
in a pot of soil. People said they probably wouldn't germanate.

Two came up. People here locally said the sprouts probably
wouldn't last long. One has survived, transplanted into a 22 inch pot.

Then people said it probably would never bloom and even if it did it
would more 'n likely be sterile and not produce any fruit. This year it
finally bloomed for the first time and has about 2 dozen citrus on it
up to an inch and a half across. Now I'm getting " The fruit will
probably taste like crap " from them. We'll see, so far the nay sayers
are batting zero.

You may be wondering why I keep saying citrus. To tell the truth, I
plumb forgot what type of citrus it was I was eating when I stuck the
seeds in the ground. I do remember thinking it was a most excellent
fruit, which is why I stuck the seeds in an unused pot. Now I've had
months of expectation anticipating how they're going to taste.

You just can't buy entertainment like this. Some friends even have a
lottery going as to what it's going to be.

Who said gardening is boring?

Bill who was privledged to see a most excellent rainbow this
evening while enjoying the fragrances wafting off his Sweet Autumn
Clematis and Angels Trumpet, living la vida loca.
Waves Hi to Maddy


Citrus often *does* grow true from seed. Sometimes citrus seeds will
grow 2 plants instead of one, and I've read that one of those will be a
clone of the mother plant. I don't know if it's the larger or the
smaller sprout, but if you only keep seedlings from seeds that grow 2
shoots, and you seperate and keep both seedlings, at least 50% should be
good.

Apples never grow true from seed, and seldom are very good, but at least
an apple tree that you grew from a seed will be *unique* :-)

Best regards,
Bob


Yup, the worse that could happen is the tree dies. The best, he gets a
good tasting apple. Most likely, he gets a shade tree, but the kid gets
to, mayby, develop an interest in growing things and that's the
important part.

Bill

sherwindu wrote in
:

You can buy a small tree for as little as 15 to 20 dollars and you
then know exactly what variety you have.

++++++++++++

I am sorry but I have to 100% disagree with this point.

About a dozen years ago, I bought a Navel orange tree to plant in my back
yard. I was over-joyed with the delicious oranges that it produced the
very first year so I decided to plant two more Navel orange trees.

I went to the nursery and checked the stock of citrus trees. Each plant
had a label glued onto the pot which declared it to be a Navel orange.
Each plant also had a plastic strip wrapped around the trunk saying
"Navel Orange" and each plant had a large tag hanging from it with a
photograph and planting instructions and specifications and "Navel
Orange" declared in large letters. I picked out the two best looking ones
and planted them.

As soon as they produced fruit I knew something was not right. None of
the fruit had navels (Belly Buttons) on them. I watched with interest to
see what the ripe fruit would be like when they ripened. One of the trees
turned out to be a "Blood Orange". The fruit is small .... just a little
bigger than a lemon although it is more spherical in shape than a lemon
with juice that is bright red in color. It is tasty but not worth the
trouble to eat. The tree is still in my back yard but only because I have
not gotten around to digging it up and disposing of it. The other tree
was a dissapointment at first because it was not a Navel Orange but it
has turned out to be a real treasure. It produces large fruit which has
seeds and no Belly Button but it has a characteristic which makes it
highly desirable. The fruit ripens between Thanksgiving and Christmas and
it stays fresh and delicious hanging on the tree almost the entire year
long. I have no idea what type of Orange it is but I am very happy to
have it.

After this experience I wanted to plant a Seckel Pear. I told the owner
of the nursery about my experience with the Navel Oranges and asked, "Are
you sure that these trees are Seckel Pears?" He replied, "There is no way
to be sure. I had a special order for 200 Seckel pear trees. This is what
my supplier shipped to me but you can never know for sure". I do not
believe that what I got was a Seckel pear. The fruit does not look like
the photos of Seckel pears that I have seen but it is not a bad pear
either so I will not complain.

My conclusion is this. There is only one sure way to know what you are
getting. Plant a seedling for rootstock. Then take a scion from a known
tree of the desired type and graph it onto the rootstock. Even then the
rootstock selected could possibly have a effect on the finished product.
When it comes to apple trees you can buy a 5-in-1 at some nurseries. This
is a potted tree with 5 different varieties graphted onto a single
rootstock. Let it grow and in later years just prune off the parts that
you dont like.

Them's my thoughts,

PON

"Pseud O. Nym" wrote in message
...
sherwindu wrote in
:

You can buy a small tree for as little as 15 to 20 dollars and you
then know exactly what variety you have.

++++++++++++

I am sorry but I have to 100% disagree with this point.

About a dozen years ago, I bought a Navel orange tree to plant in my back
yard. I was over-joyed with the delicious oranges that it produced the
very first year so I decided to plant two more Navel orange trees.

I went to the nursery and checked the stock of citrus trees. Each plant
had a label glued onto the pot which declared it to be a Navel orange.
Each plant also had a plastic strip wrapped around the trunk saying
"Navel Orange" and each plant had a large tag hanging from it with a
photograph and planting instructions and specifications and "Navel
Orange" declared in large letters. I picked out the two best looking ones
and planted them.

As soon as they produced fruit I knew something was not right. None of
the fruit had navels (Belly Buttons) on them. I watched with interest to
see what the ripe fruit would be like when they ripened. One of the trees
turned out to be a "Blood Orange". The fruit is small .... just a little
bigger than a lemon although it is more spherical in shape than a lemon
with juice that is bright red in color. It is tasty but not worth the
trouble to eat. The tree is still in my back yard but only because I have
not gotten around to digging it up and disposing of it. The other tree
was a dissapointment at first because it was not a Navel Orange but it
has turned out to be a real treasure. It produces large fruit which has
seeds and no Belly Button but it has a characteristic which makes it
highly desirable. The fruit ripens between Thanksgiving and Christmas and
it stays fresh and delicious hanging on the tree almost the entire year
long. I have no idea what type of Orange it is but I am very happy to
have it.

After this experience I wanted to plant a Seckel Pear. I told the owner
of the nursery about my experience with the Navel Oranges and asked, "Are
you sure that these trees are Seckel Pears?" He replied, "There is no way
to be sure. I had a special order for 200 Seckel pear trees. This is what
my supplier shipped to me but you can never know for sure". I do not
believe that what I got was a Seckel pear. The fruit does not look like
the photos of Seckel pears that I have seen but it is not a bad pear
either so I will not complain.

My conclusion is this. There is only one sure way to know what you are
getting. Plant a seedling for rootstock. Then take a scion from a known
tree of the desired type and graph it onto the rootstock. Even then the
rootstock selected could possibly have a effect on the finished product.
When it comes to apple trees you can buy a 5-in-1 at some nurseries. This
is a potted tree with 5 different varieties graphted onto a single
rootstock. Let it grow and in later years just prune off the parts that
you dont like.

Them's my thoughts,

I'm sure there are people who buy Rolls Royces and have mechanical problems.
Things occasionally go wrong even with the best plans. The question is if
your experience is typical or atypical. I would say that it is not typical.
You are right in that grafting known material onto root stock is a proven
way to guarantee getting the tree you want, but for most of us it isn't a
realistic alternative.

"Bill" wrote in message
...

Apples never grow true from seed, and seldom are very good, but at least
an apple tree that you grew from a seed will be *unique* :-)

Best regards,
Bob


Yup, the worse that could happen is the tree dies. The best, he gets a
good tasting apple. Most likely, he gets a shade tree, but the kid gets
to, mayby, develop an interest in growing things and that's the
important part.

Bill

If the kids are typical, they will have forgotten about the tree in about 3
minutes. Meanwhile you will be stuck with a tree that is almost guaranteed
to be worthless in terms of fruit production and which is likely to grow
quite large. If the kids are 7 now, they will be about 17 when the tree
first produces apples. You know how excited a 17 year old can get about a
tree producing inedible apples -- I'd say about as excited as making
sauerkraut or doing the ironing. Meanwhile you will be picking up the
rotting fruit that attracts yellow jackets and other wildlife. Furthermore,
the typical family moves about every 5 years, so the chances of even being
around when the tree produces is quite slim. I see people make really poor
plant choices in my neighborhood and then move. The problem is ultimately
passed along to someone else. That innocent experiment or impulse purchase
turns into someone else's expensive tree removal.

There are lots of plants you can grow from seed besides apples. If you want
to teach a science lesson then by all means do it. If you want fruit grown
on a manageable tree, then buy one. There is no need for both "experiments"
to be linked. I see parents project their own interests onto children. It
is surprising how little Megan becomes interested in making ice-cream when
it just happens that mom is interested in making ice-cream. Therefore, mom
justifies her purchase of the $400 ice-cream freezer based on her 6 year
old's sudden interest. This is a scenario that actually happened in my
family.