Virginia Beauty and Her Kin

(Page 5 of 6)

October/November 1996
By Tim Hensley 
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So, for old varieties, you have to deal with a specialty nursery. These growers offer good selection, a quality product, and friendly service. On the negative side, availability can be a problem since many varieties are propagated in smaller quantities or on a rotating annual schedule. But with a little patience, you should be able to locate just about anything you've ever heard of.

Expect to pay anywhere from $7 to $20 for good, husky, one-year whips. Compared to $10 for a polybag variety, that's not an unreasonable price. And don't be afraid of buying the smaller, oneyear trees. Whips transplant better than two- and three-year garden-center stock, which is packaged with an eye to consumer impact more than survivability.

Know, too, that trees from a specialty grower are usually shipped bare-root. This can seem strange if you've never received bare-root stock before. But it is nothing to worry about. Once a tree has gone dormant in the fall, it can be handled bareroot until budbreak, as long as the roots are kept moist.

Bare-root handling does limit planting time to the months of November, March, and April. Still, this is plenty of time to get a small orchard going.

How many trees should you plant? That depends on how much land you have and what your goals are. Generally speaking, if you are a homeowner with a good-sized lot, and you'd like to produce enough fruit for your family and a few friends, a dozen trees is probably your upper limit. More than that and you'll be overburdened with apple chores.

ONE-YEAR WHIPS almost always plant better than two- or three-year-old garden-center stock. One more tip. Whenever possible, it's best to deal with a local nursery, or one in your section of the country. This cuts shipping costs, and it lets you find out what varieties are likely to do well in your area. It is commonly held that northern-grown stock is hardier than southern-grown stock. This is a misconception. Grimes Golden is Grimes Golden whether propagated in Maine or Florida. The only advantage to buying from a nursery a zone or two to the north is that it opens the window of opportunity for planting a little wider. (For specific information on growers of southern apples, see the source list on page 42.)

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