Seed grown Apple/Pear
- Thread starter ncstewart
- Start date
Native Hunter
Well-Known Member
On the contrary, you could end up with trees that produce great fruit. Every named cultivar started as a tree grown from seed. You could also end up with trees that don't fruit well or have characteristics that you don't like. For instance, you might get a tree that bears good fruit but it doesn't drop before rotting. That might not be a problem for an orchard, but might be in a wildlife planting..
My worst fear with apples would be a tree that was prone to fireblight. That is a big problems with apples in my area.
Some species of fruit produce very true to parent trees. We have plums produced from seed and I can't tell any difference between the various trees. Lot's of vendors sell crabapples (and maybe even apples and pears) that they claim hold really true to the mother tree. I don't doubt them.
There is a forum member here who planted a hundred crabapple seed and ended up saving 5 or 6 for the characteristics he liked (I'm going from memory, and that may not be exactly right). But hopefully he will see your post and chime it.
A friend of mine asked me to save him some apple seed from the trees in my yard this year. He is going to do what you are thinking about. He knows I have some good parent trees and figures the chances of getting a good seedling are increased from that. Time will tell.
Good luck....
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catscratch
Well-Known Member
How long does it usually take for seedlings to produce (in general); pear? crab? apple?
If it takes 5yrs off the wait time then buying sounds like a good idea. If it's only a yr or two then I can plant an awful lot of seeds for the cost of a couple of trees...
If it takes 5yrs off the wait time then buying sounds like a good idea. If it's only a yr or two then I can plant an awful lot of seeds for the cost of a couple of trees...
Native Hunter
Well-Known Member
Well, with apples it can vary, but you a general rule of thumb would be 10-12 years. Crops the first few years will be light but gradually increase. However, a good quality full sized apple tree is a treasure beyond belief. IMNHO much superior in many ways to puny semi dwarfs.
Now with that said, I grow semi dwarfs too, but everyone with the room should put out a few full sized trees.
Nebraskaz71
Active Member
Ive got a peach tree growing from seed this year, them things really grow!
Native Hunter
Well-Known Member
This year, this apple and about 15 more like it came from a full sized tree that was planted 12 years ago - first crop.
That was the good news. The bad news is that soon a bulldozer will doze down the tree.
That was the good news. The bad news is that soon a bulldozer will doze down the tree.
