Flexibility and Stability:Wild Apple

Malus pumila var. niedwetzkyana I received this seed from an overseas arboretum collection many years ago. It is a white flowering form of a normally red flower and red flesh crabapple. I only had one tree of it at the time and planted it near a group of Finland subarctic Norway spruce. It does have the red flesh. I grew many seedlings of it of which I added to the population by selecting four of the most vigorous seedlings. The seedlings had larger fruit than the parent and were also very fruitful at a young age. When fully bletted, the fruit has a powerful almost too strong of a flavor. Astringency is very high until it breaks down fully. After that it is like apple concentrate but paste like in texture.

Stability

The tree can support huge weight on its limbs. It often bends to the ground with its yield. It fruits every year.

I can see that Niedzwetzky’s Apple could be used for syrup, cider and flavoring. Probably using a limb shaker would help in harvesting. I climb and shake the limbs or use a pole pruner to drop the fruit. It is always clean. Even though this selection is not “true” it inherits many of the wonderful features of the subspecies and species of the domestic apple without the usual problems. Flavor on I say. Never mind the size. Pass the paste.

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About Biologicalenrichment

I started a farm in the early 1980’s called Oikos Tree Crops. It was once a 13 acre pasture and overtime became a forest. Today I am dedicated more than ever to finding, preserving, creating and disseminating a wide variety of food plants. At my farm I explore new plants and healthy ways to raise them. I currently focus my attention on my seed repository while providing seeds and bring these new discoveries to the public at large. My farm is one of the oldest and most diverse maintained tree crop plantings in the U.S. using many plants from around the world as a form of global agroforestry applied at a local level. Every plant grown on my farm is grown from seeds. I use the tree crop philosophy as a means to expand the use of perennial, woody tree and shrub crops raised from seed without the use of chemical and high energy inputs.The two story agriculture is alive and well at Oikos Tree Crops. This blog highlights ecological enrichment as a means to improve human health and raise awareness of the possibilities of creating a healthy earth and a wealthy farmer. My story is told by describing my 50 years of farming and life experiences surrounding agriculture filled with my love of nature and my constant search for a greater diversity beyond the cultivar on a global stage.
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