Pulsegleaner
Garden Master
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2014
- Messages
- 3,624
- Reaction score
- 7,227
- Points
- 306
- Location
- Lower Hudson Valley, New York
New summer, new surprise.
I was back over the bridge today, and so decided to investigate something I thought I had seen last time. As we were driving out of a parking lot (I swore I saw apples growing on one of the shrubs.) So off I plodded across the parking lot.
When I got to the shrub, I at first was sure I had been mistaken. The shrub WAS an apple, but it was clearly an ornamental crab apple, with the small fruits on long stems. So I thought it might be the tree next to it,, but no, that was the same, So I was turning to leave, and that's when I saw them, two full size apples in the middle of the first tree.
I've got them now (the were already shiny, so if they aren't ripe, they are far enough along to finish inside.).
It's clear the tree was grafted, and the rootstock sent up a branch, but I am surprised anyone would graft an ornamental crab apple ONTO a regular apple (it's usually the other way round, as crab apples tend to be hardier.) Plus, the middle of the first tree is a little high for a rootstock branch to be (unless, to get a round shape, they grafted each branch on one by one,)
I was back over the bridge today, and so decided to investigate something I thought I had seen last time. As we were driving out of a parking lot (I swore I saw apples growing on one of the shrubs.) So off I plodded across the parking lot.
When I got to the shrub, I at first was sure I had been mistaken. The shrub WAS an apple, but it was clearly an ornamental crab apple, with the small fruits on long stems. So I thought it might be the tree next to it,, but no, that was the same, So I was turning to leave, and that's when I saw them, two full size apples in the middle of the first tree.
I've got them now (the were already shiny, so if they aren't ripe, they are far enough along to finish inside.).
It's clear the tree was grafted, and the rootstock sent up a branch, but I am surprised anyone would graft an ornamental crab apple ONTO a regular apple (it's usually the other way round, as crab apples tend to be hardier.) Plus, the middle of the first tree is a little high for a rootstock branch to be (unless, to get a round shape, they grafted each branch on one by one,)