Finally Tasting the First New Seedling Apple Variety Grown From My Cross Pollinations

Standard gear I recommend. I either use or have used all of it.

BOOKS:

Instagram and Facebook @SkillCult

It is finally time to taste some new apples made by crossing different varieties. This appears to be the first to ripen of the 8 or so apple seedlings that set fruit this year. It is very edible, though nothing to write home about so far. It was not entirely ripe though and fruit quality will often improve as trees mature. I don't expect much from it, but I don't expect much from most of them.

Exerpts from blog post: Somewhere back over five years ago I began to cross pollinate apples with the goal to breed new varieties. This year 12 seedlings out of about 120 bloomed, some of those grew apples, and I now begin tasting the fruits of those labors. In the video below, I taste what appears to be the earliest ripening of those fruiting this year and am looking forward to tasting a few more as the season progresses, though the set is sparse, the growing conditions harsh, and many of the fruits look pretty stunted and tortured.

This particular apple goes now by it’s tag name GN x GRT 11/12, which means, Grenadine blossom pollinated with Golden Russet pollen in 2011. 12 is a random identifier, but it is the important number that distinguishes this apple from the other seventeen GN x GRT crosses I made in 2011. Grenadine is a red fleshed apple with fruit punch and berry type flavors and the Golden ‘Russet is a super sweet, complexly flavored gem of an old American apple that really was a major part of my inspiration to collect and work with apples in the first place.

This offspring of those very different, but both very interesting parents is yellow, smooth, takes a high polish and has a strong aroma, even though it was picked under ripe. The texture is crisp now, but a damaged one that I ate a couple of weeks ago had a rubbery texture, which if I recall correctly is a trait of the Golden Russet. The rubbery texture that some russets acquire as they age is far preferable to the mealy texture of most over ripening apples. This new apple is very sweet, and I’m sure the sugar would rise further if it were allowed to ripen more. Golden Russet has very high sugar levels, allegedly up to 20% and even more, while grenadine is lacking in the sugar department. GN x GRT 11/12 has an angularity to it, like grenadine, but not nearly as pronounced as Grenadines “roman nose” ridge. Though perfectly edible, it is fairly astringent like Grenadine, although that may mellow if it ripens more or is grown under better conditions. These trees are not getting enough food and water, which I hope to fix this next season.

[chelseahartweg]

You have absolutely inspired me. We are about to close on 10 acres and as much as I've always loved apples and have fallen in love with breeding, this is absolutely an encouragement to me to be a citizen apple breeder!

[donnasmithdesign]

If you have extra seeds of interesting possible crosses I'd happily pay you to send seeds our way and grow a bunch out on our homestead. I just successfully grafted my first 50 apple trees this Spring and I'm officially apple obsessed... with no fruit to speak of as yet. Also, thanks for your always informative videos with just the right sprinkling of good humor. Cheers!

[wheelsgonewild]

Very cool. Can't wait to see the outcome.

[tomelzear]

Totally agree with your ideas on good apples coming from seedlings. I have about 5 apple seedling trees that I am watching. 4 had very nice tasting apples with the fifth being a large clean green apple but a bit tart. It was probably a later ripening apple that I picked because there was only one. Another gentleman on a Facebook page also seemed to be having some nice success with seedling apples. Keep up the good work.

[neilsmall]

you have inspired me to try something out of this world and i believe it can work

[marklee]

This is awesome. I can't wait to see what happens.

[milkcoffee-hg]

great job, it's not easy to wait that long to make the apple tree to bear fruit especially from seedlings

[wildedibles]

The one tree we have has not fruited yet its over my 5 foot head... Anyway it's leaves are maroon red as your dark red black apple... The only tree that has leaves like that are ornamental apple more like we'll smaller then rose hip size apples, berry size... So it would prob be this apple or a cross from other apples around.... I'm kinda liking my suprize.... I like wild apples ones planted by animals even bugs and such you learn to work around wild food.. Lol...

[christophergruenwald]

If they don’t work you just give them the axe treatment and have a bbq. Then plant a new one.

[DavidWestBgoodppl]

If this apple had been remarkable, what would the next step have been? Use the seeds within to grow saplings, then use cuttings from the saplings to graft into host trees? Thank you!

[wildedibles]

Compost and such... Apples will fertilize themselves... Egg shell... Mine get a bit of fertilizer it's fermented brew... Cabbage, comfrey dandelion.. Fruit.. Flowering weeds molasses... My veg garden gets it more tho... Wood ash... I want to line garden s in rock found at side of roads for extra minerals diff color rock diff minerals... Woodchips... I know it's an older video so what do you fertilize with now?

[marklilly]

Awesome, thanks for sharing!! I had given this some thought but gave it up based on negative comments on the subject, even Stephen Hayes (whose vids I love) said "there are so many good heritage apples don't bother trying to breed apples" and I was thinking "WHY NOT?" Now I'm inspired :) How do you insure that the flower is only pollinated by pollen you want to use? I imagine you'd have to use a footie sock or some other barrier to keep pollinators off.

[travisdavis]

Does anyone know where I can find some literature written by Albert Etter? At this point I’ve heard of him enough that I want to read some of his work.

[donallmcgee]

I have been really looking forward to this video, really interesting project. I am seriously considering a apple breeding project, Id love to produce a tasty apple that can deal with the harsh Donegal (Ireland) climate.

[jacksonvasey]

Do you think the crowdfunding thing would include scions/pollen/seeds as a reward for paying for that? Basically just pre-selling the genetic material for the trees you want the crowdfunding to pay for planting. Probably a tough sell having to wait 6-7 years for the reward, though.

[benchpresser]

Very good work sir! May I ask what part of the country you live in to get them to grow so fast?

[peterbochek]

Hello my friend, close to ware  I live there are several old abandon  home sites, many of which are over 100 years old  and around these old home sites there are many old  gnarly apple trees,  some which still produce poor examples of  fruit and others that no longer produce   fruit. I have always wanted to embark on a project of taking scion cuttings in the spring, I live in Western PA.,  and buying rootstock to graft the scions to the rootstock. My question to you is this,   if you grafted a scion  from an old  non-producing apple tree to a  modern rootstock would this graft one day reproduce the original apple ? Your input would be most appreciated . Please keep up your great breeding work ! In a way you remind me of a modern day Luther Burbank !