Native Hunter 2023 Apples

[Native Hunter]

This year is my first significant crop of Becton Pears. So far I can’t tell any difference between the look of Becton and Kieffer. I will try to watch the drop times. Beaton is supposed to be a little later.

 

[Native Hunter]

I’ve had Galloway Pears before, but I don’t think I’ve posted pics of them in this thread. They are an Asian pear that resembles Olympic, but they don’t get nearly as big. I have a good crop of them this year.

 

[Native Hunter]

This is an apple I’ve never posted before. I bought it as a late red apple but I think there was a mixup at the nursery. I now believe this tree to be a Northwest Greening. The apples on this tree are one of my favorites for drying. The tree is highly DR with zero FB over the years and very little leaf spotting. Apples are quite large (around 3.5 inches) and very clean.

 

[Native Hunter]

I have two more pears for you. The first is Bartlett. When I started planting pears, I made the decision to stay away from Bartlett because of its reputation of being susceptible to fireblight. However, a few years ago when I bought some Kieffers, they sent one Bartlett by mistake.

That turned out to be an okay mistake. The tree is now mature and has never shown even a hint of fireblight. It is loaded this year and a few are beginning to ripen.





This next pear is Senator Clark. I have two of these and love them. Both have light crops this year, but they were loaded last year and the year before. Pears are big - some right at 4 inches.

 

[Native Hunter]

I have what was sold to me as an Old Fashioned Winesap at the farm that has been a really good tree. I normally leave all of these apples for the deer, but this year they looked so good I brought home a few gallons. I will turn these into chips.

 

[Native Hunter]

Priscilla is right on time. This is my second time picking this tree this year and there will be one more picking in a few days.

 

[KSQ2]

Do you frequent a farmers market Native? What do you do with all that fruit?

 

[Native Hunter]

Do you frequent a farmers market Native? What do you do with all that fruit?

I have a lot of relatives, neighbors and church friends who love fruit. What we don’t use ourselves I give to them free of charge. It’s just something that I enjoy doing.

And of course, it also draws in the deer.

PS - a preview of Kieffer that will ripen in the fall. I have about 10 trees that look like this.

 

[Native Hunter]

Last year I set a waist high Atago Pear tree and was surprised this spring to see that it had set fruit. I pulled all off except 2 pears, which grew well. Today they looked ripe so I tried one. The taste and crispiness blew me away. And when have you seen any fruit look so good without spraying.....

 

[Native Hunter]

This pear is Moonglow. You can see the red blush starting to form on the fruit exposed to the sun. This blush increases as they ripen. The fruit would remind you of Kieffer and the drop time is close to Kieffer but a bit earlier. DR is bulletproof.

 

[Native Hunter]

Just got through picking up a whole gallon of chestnuts below a medium sized early dropping tree. A tree 25 feet away the same size is loaded but hasn’t dropped a single nut yet.

 

[Native Hunter]

Just a few minutes later, another quick gallon under a different tree. Dangerous to stand under this tree. That’s all I need. The deer can have the rest.

 

[Drycreek]

Whatchs doing with those nuts Native ?

 

[Native Hunter]

Whatchs doing with those nuts Native ?

I will eat many of them and give several to friends and family who also like to eat them. Two gallons will go quickly. Most of my nuts will be eaten by the deer. I have about 25+ chestnut trees dropping now, and I don't plan on picking up many more at the farm, so the deer will eat well. I do have one tree at home that I will gather nuts from. It is a seedling tree but makes extremely nice and sweet nuts that I like to eat. That one hasn't dropped a single nut yet but is loaded pretty good.

 

[Drycreek]

When I was a kid, we had a few chinqapin trees scattered around, and we would walk a mile or two to gather them up. We loved those things ! I haven’t seen one in years now, but it seems like they preferred really sandy soil. At that time, we had neither deer, nor hogs in the area I lived in, so they were there when we wanted them. Now, you would have to stand guard and fight the hogs off !

 

[Native Hunter]

When I was a kid, we had a few chinqapin trees scattered around, and we would walk a mile or two to gather them up. We loved those things ! I haven’t seen one in years now, but it seems like they preferred really sandy soil. At that time, we had neither deer, nor hogs in the area I lived in, so they were there when we wanted them. Now, you would have to stand guard and fight the hogs off !

The thing I like most about Chinkapins is that they will grow and produce well with less sunlight than chestnuts require. If you have places with 1/2 a day of sunlight, they are a great choice. The nuts also have an excellent taste, and I have never seen a weevil in a chinkapin nut.

 

[Native Hunter]

For a long time my Golden Hornets seemed to hang all winter and not drop, but today I noticed a few on this more mature tree are falling. I hope that this continues. I have 3 of these and they are loaded every year.

 

[Native Hunter]

 

[Native Hunter]

Lot's of early persimmons already falling. First pic is Prok and second pic is a seedling tree I have named Tiny Tim. It has small persimmons and is loaded every year. The deer relish the fruit.

PS - Notice the broken lower limbs from fruit overload on Tiny Tim.

 

[Native Hunter]

As my Dolgos mature, they are becoming a good slow drop crab for my area. I’m getting enough dropping daily right now to keep deer checking.