apple

[Kirsten]

I've always understood that you're supposed to stratify apple seeds for at least a couple of months before you plant them, which I have never had the patience to do. Then I pulled an ancient apple out of the refrigerator and thought, "hey, this has been in the cold for at least two months......."

I pulled out three seeds and planted them in the mango pot, also known as the pot-of-everything. Two of them have sprouted, so I dug them out and moved them to little newspaper pots until I can buy more real pots. Nothing from the third one yet, but that might be the ridiculous cold spell + downpour + utter lack of sunshine we've been having.

[Riz]

well done kirsten,

Never tried germinating a apple seed before, sounds like a cool and intresting project.. i might give it a go myself :)

[Kirsten]

Here is a picture of my apple - sorry the picture file is huge, my laptop broke and I'm currently on a different computer that I'm not familiar with :(

http://bp1.blogger.com/_M1JY712QvRQ/SC4JSIG9TfI/AAAAAAAAACw/7Tt25HgOcDc/s1600-h/apple.png

[Riz]

its cute..

is that the pot-of-everything ? ;)

[Kirsten]

haha no :) I fished this one out and put it in a little newspaper pot I made. Maybe I'll post a tutorial for that later if anyone's interested? I put all my pepper sprouts in those because I didn't have enough actual pots for them, and the nice thing about the newspaper pot is that you can just bury it altogether in the ground, let it rot, and not disturb the roots at all during transplanting.

The pot of everything contained (at one point) my mango, three apple sprouts, and about 8 mother-of-millions (http://humanflowerproject.com/images/uploads/mother-leaf200.jpg) it is this really odd looking plant that sprouts new plants right off of the edge of its leaves, and they start to grow wherever they fall. Someone gave me a leaf covered with little sprouts, and since I had nowhere else to put them... they went in the everything pot! :)

[Kirsten]

From a few days ago

http://i32.tinypic.com/2m65w7r.png

It seems to attract aphids :( I've found an insect on it every couple of days now and I've been pulling them off with my fingers. Maybe it's time for it to move back inside, though it really likes the sunshine...

[Riz]

nice work kirsten..

looks healthy.. you could try putting a bit of washing up liquid with water in a spray bottle and then spray the apple seedling in the evenings... thats what i do with aphids that are on my rose bush..

[Kirsten]

http://i27.tinypic.com/2nq5ok3.png

I've been kind of lazy about it recently, but it seems to be growing ok... a very nice apply stem, it looks exactly like the kind of stem you sometimes still find on the top of the apple you eat.

[~Obsidian~]

How goes your apple tree now Kirsten? We used to have one in the garden, it never gave fruit and looked permanently dead. Apart from sprouting a few leaves in the summer it was bare...and now it's gone :( It occurs to me now that it just might not have gotten pollinated :mad:

May have to grow another one...no two.. now :p

[Kirsten]

I forgot about it, actually :p I'll have to post another picture soon - it's grown a lot of new little itty bitty leaves and just stayed that way.

What do you mean by your tree is "gone"?? did someone eat it or steal it??

[~Obsidian~]

There was a massacre of garden :eek: leaving us devoid of a few trees ( it was purposeful, but thinking back it just sucks!!)

[~Obsidian~]

I 'stratified' some apple seeds in the fridge not long ago...I was rewarded with four of them developing small roots today, :D I took those out and potted them and bunged the rest back in the fridge. I'm trying to figure out when I stuck 'em in the fridge in the first place, I think it was the 8th

[~Obsidian~]

Heres a picture of the seeds. If you look closely, you can see the rooty bits poking out, especially in the top left of the bag. Apologies for my dodgy camera skills

[Riz]

for a minute i thought they were dates :)

[~Obsidian~]

:) I just checked on the rest of them and they're growing too :)

Dangit, I'm gonna stratify that peach pit anyway!

[Te'oma]

A lot of fruit trees aren't grown from seeds anymore. I know where I live, most of the newer apple species are grafted onto root stock from trees like spartans. Apples like some strains of delicious apples will die if they are exposed to the cold conditions that we get here but they will survive if they are grafted onto the root stocks of hardier strains.
I have always wanted to try my hand at growing trees that had 4 or 5 different kinds of fruit on them but that's just me I guess :D

[~Obsidian~]

A lot of fruit trees aren't grown from seeds anymore. I know where I live, most of the newer apple species are grafted onto root stock from trees like spartans. Apples like some strains of delicious apples will die if they are exposed to the cold conditions that we get here but they will survive if they are grafted onto the root stocks of hardier strains.
I have always wanted to try my hand at growing trees that had 4 or 5 different kinds of fruit on them but that's just me I guess :D

:eek:
Good idea, have you successfully grafted stuff before? I'm so annoyed with all this grafting business, honestly! Are there any types of trees that grow well enough without having been grafted? So I know what to go for.

Been wanting to grow a loquat (japanese plum) tree for a while, I've heard they do quite well over here.

[Te'oma]

hard to say what will work...I don't know where you are :p
Trees that tend to grow well in most climates would be cherry trees of most varieties. If you live where temps are fairly moderate ie don't get below -5C for extended periods then most apple species should do well too. Plums are usually pretty hardy as well. Peaches and apricots would do well there too.
The biggest clue is to look at what has grown well in your area historically and go from there.

[~Obsidian~]

Oh, oops! Londoner here, I don't have a clue about what are temps are like to be honest with you (all I know is cold, and colder!) although I've been keeping an eye out this year with my trusty thermometer!! You seem to be spot on with all of those guesses though, *puts on monocle* research dictates that they are usually grown here, although I did check on other forums about the japanese plum, and they seem to flourish so wahey! The temperature is rather dodgy nowadays, as proven by the fruiting of olive trees :eek:

[Te'oma]

LOL well if olives survive there, your apples will have no problem...so long as the smog doesn't get to them :D
BTW is this Hiking from ummah?

[~Obsidian~]

Got it in one uncle jee :D

[Kasim]

Has anybody heard of fuji apples?

[~Obsidian~]

I have now! Any particular significance?

[Kasim]

They are just juicy and tasty alhamdulillah. I love apples but not more than oranges

[~Obsidian~]

I think I got a couple of apple seeds sprouting :D

[Te'oma]

from what kind of apples?

[~Obsidian~]

from the...shop apples...new type they are :o

(I don't remember!)

Twas the...red kind..Gala I think? got a few sprouting, and the seeds that I left in the fridge have got even longer root/shoot things now, and they've turned red. I'm wondering what'll happen to them if I leave them even longer?

[~Obsidian~]

The little seedlings are stretching up to the sun, one has lost it's shell already.:natur014: got quite a few seeds, wondering if they'll all sprout, then I could give some away! :eek: :D

[Te'oma]

the galas are not a new strain here(maybe they are in the UK) but they are a good hardy strain and will grow well for you if they can get past the initial seedling stage. A lot of them succumb to damping off which is actually a fungal attack on the tender seedling.

[Riz]

i have two apple trees in the garden, One of them is healthy and gives plenty of fruit, the other needs a pruning, when the fuit grows on the branches they get black spots and shrivel up before they even grow any bigger, ill show ya pics later..

when is the best time to prune a apple tree ? spring or autumn?

[~Obsidian~]

The apple seeds are doing well, little seedlings with leaves developing in the middle and a red stem already :D thinking to plant the rest of my seeds now

[~Obsidian~]

I finally planted the rest of my seeds:butterfly-049:

[Kirsten]

Yay!!! I hope they turn out well :)

[~Obsidian~]

Thank ya :D quick question, were your seedlings strong and upright or flopping all over the place? Cuz I think mine are growing so fast they can't support themselves :confused: I've had to stick straws around them to keep them upright

[~Obsidian~]

I think your squirrels have migrated Kirsten, they're here with me now, and so far they've destroyed my peanut plants, massacred two of my apple seedlings and buried the third despite the straws around them, and stolen a mango seed! Now I've got one dying mango seed (it went mouldy so I chopped half of it off and now it's just gonna die lol) and one apple seedling...good thing I planted the rest of the seeds! And I just realised I had my possibly germinating pomegranate seeds in that pot too, darnit :( :(

[~Obsidian~]

All apple seedlings dead.

Bummer :(



I'm going to stratify some more so that they are ready in time for spring InshaAllah!

:sunny:

[Kirsten]

Mine's http://www.gymworld.de/gymboard/images/smilies/new/dead.giftoo :(

[~Obsidian~]

OMG that emoticon!! :eek: Super weird!

But..how come? :eek:

[Kirsten]

Oh I just realized... do you mean how come it's dead? Well, I left it at home and I think it either a) didn't get water b) got REALLY watered c) froze d) was left in the shade e) got too much sun.... etc.... also known as I really don't know haha :(

[~Obsidian~]

LOL you forgot f) other aww that sucks. I'm rather annoyed though, I had loads!! No use crying about it though...just gotta bung some more seeds in the fridge :D

[Kirsten]

Two summers ago I put apple seeds in the fridge and checked on them regularly.. and about five weeks in someone threw them away!! I was SO mad ... now everyone in the family knows not to mess with my plants :)

[edibles]

A lot of fruit trees aren't grown from seeds anymore. I know where I live, most of the newer apple species are grafted onto root stock from trees like spartans. Apples like some strains of delicious apples will die if they are exposed to the cold conditions that we get here but they will survive if they are grafted onto the root stocks of hardier strains.
I have always wanted to try my hand at growing trees that had 4 or 5 different kinds of fruit on them but that's just me I guess

i got a tree 2 years ago from hombase and it produces nice fruit if iplant a seed will it grow true to form or should i just grow it 4 fun(is it worth it

im unsure of the species ill upload a pic of one of the fruit if it helps

when is the best time to prune a apple tree ? spring or autumn?

my dad always prunes his plum tree(extremely similar in growth to apples) in autumn

[Kirsten]

i got a tree 2 years ago from hombase and it produces nice fruit if iplant a seed will it grow true to form or should i just grow it 4 fun(is it worth it


No, it won't be true to form. But it is fun!

[edibles]

ok i planted about 8 seeds and in my tray of everything( no law suits kirst)
it has some dragonfruit seedlings, some pomm seedlings and now hopefully some apple seedling i should use different pots and tray but i really cant be bothered

anyway 8 seedlings after 2 weeks (it should have been longer but i got hungry)
im hoping for some seedlings

[Te'oma]

i got a tree 2 years ago from hombase and it produces nice fruit if iplant a seed will it grow true to form or should i just grow it 4 fun(is it worth it

im unsure of the species ill upload a pic of one of the fruit if it helps

no it probably won't be true unless everyone else in your area has the same strain of trees. You will probably wind up with some hybrid.



my dad always prunes his plum tree(extremely similar in growth to apples) in autumn

not sure where you live but I would suggest pruning in the spring just as the leaf buds are coming on. Pruning in the fall exposes the fresh cuts to the cold, dry air and it gives bacteria and such more of a chance to enter the tree and cause rot. If you prune in the spring, the sap flow will help prevent bacterial infections and the healing will start immediately.

[~Obsidian~]

My uncle (not real uncle but family friend uncle) brought me around some apple seedlings today! Totally out of the blue! Yaay! :D In return I've given him some cucumber and pepper seedlings :D I'll start some more I guess :sunny:

[~Obsidian~]

They're developing some proper leaves now (but small), I potted them on :D I have 1 red apple seedling and two green apple seedlings.

[Ummbilal]

i know i sound dumb but why are you lot putting your apple seeds in the fridge? why not plant them in the ground?
a lady a few doors away used to throw all her fruit seeds on the ground outside her back door and now she has a lemon tree growing there (10 years on) mashallah so cant we just plant apple seeds in the ground?

in the uk coxs apples are hardy and strong, we used to have a tree in our garden as a kid,

[Kirsten]

It's not a dumb question :) Lemon trees (and most citrus) are used to living in warm temperatures, so their seeds will germinate under any warm conditions. On the other hand, apple trees generally live in northern areas where they are very distinct seasons, so the seeds are designed such that they have to undergo a cold period (aka winter) before they will germinate. So we try to simulate that environment in the fridge :)

[edibles]

here is a pic just for u kirsten my apple tree coming into flower

[Kirsten]

Wow!!! That's beautiful :) I'm so jealous, I love apple blossoms!!

[~Obsidian~]

Mine never used to look like that! Maybe I just didn't look closely enough...:o

[edibles]

they are hitting full bloom now, i may upload a pic, also there is an apricot seedling emerging in the ground

[~Obsidian~]

Apricot? That sounds nice!

My apple seedlings are doing well outdoors, although the red seedling died :( on the other hand, another apple seedling sprouted, and I don't even remember chucking the seed in there! Pretty sure its apple though, because I saw the husk.

[farah]

here is a pic just for u kirsten my apple tree coming into flower

that's beautiful

[Riz]

here is a pic of one of my apple trees that is flowering :)

[edibles]

beautiful riz, im just about one step ahead. do you know how to stop branches breaking we have only had this problem once with a plum tree, but it looks set to happen again with the apple tree this time

[Foz]

heres my apple tree ..didnt grow it from seed though!

got it when in the first year i moved into the house so i think this is its 3rd year

[edibles]

checked the apples today looked very promising
as of today

[Kirsten]

oh they're cute! I've only seen apples in blossom and apples on the tree, never seen them in this stage before :)

[edibles]

another pic, fattening up now cant wait

[~Obsidian~]

Amazing masha Allah :)

[pwr_wrx]

I jus remembered I had some apple seeds sitting in the fridge. Just checked up on them and 3 seeds have rooted. I have one that rooted a month ago in a pot its growing nicely. Heres some pics :)
They have been in there since summer!

[pwr_wrx]

heres some more..sorry for the bad quality lighting..not sunny at all today