Malus domestica var. Honeycrisp x M. baccata hybrids, & M. domestica var. Fuji x M. baccata hybrids
Origin: Appalachian Ohio
Improvement status: Evolutionary Population
Seeds per packet: 10
BOTANICAL SAMPLE - NOT GERMINATION TESTED
Life cycle: Perennial
Dr. Amy Miller and her parents, Diane and Greg Miller, are known for being amazing chestnut growers in the Appalachian region of Ohio, where they run Empire Chestnut Company and are charter members of Route 9 Cooperative. They are also important members of the Northern Nut Growers Assocation. It was at the last two annual NNGA conferences where EFN co-founder, Dusty Hinz, has been able to get to know Amy and Greg a bit. In addition to chestnuts, they also dabble in some really cool apple genetics, the seeds of which seemed like a great fit for EFN. Amy is very excited that somebody out there might be interested in her homesteader apple breeding efforts!
Dr. Amy Miller's bio and some background info on the apples:
"I have been involved in apple exploring and breeding for my entire life. My parents, Dr. Diane Miller and Dr. Greg Miller, are horticulturists and plant breeders and have facilitated the fruit exploring and controlled crosses that have produced these populations of apples. My academic background is in ecology and plant pathology, so I am deeply interested in combining improved genetics with ecology-based horticultural practices to strategically grow apples with low inputs that are resilient against pests, disease, and environmental uncertainties. The parents of these apple seeds were grown without sprays at my experimental orchard in Appalachian Ohio. The progenitors of these apple seeds come from around the world and build upon fruit exploration, fruit breeding, and sharing of materials from many people and organizations over the years, such as the USDA, The Ohio State University, the Purdue-Rutgers-Illinois breeding program, the Midwest Apple Improvement Association, and the Midwest Apple Foundation. I was fortunate to join apple expeditions to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan in the early 2000s where we collected seeds of different populations of wild apple species, including Malus baccata, Malus seversii, and Malus niedzwetzkyana, as well as some unique selections of domestic apple. In subsequent years I have worked alongside various apple enthusiasts and collaborators to make controlled crosses within and between species, grow and select outstanding seedlings from those populations, and repeat the process across wide genetic material and through several apple generations. The work is never done! These seeds represent chances to continue to find outstanding apple genetics so that we may enjoy delicious fruit grown in a more harmonious way with our environment."
Variety description:
The Siberian crab apple is very far from a culinary apple, but it has outstanding genetics for freeze tolerance and disease resistance. The Hardy Sweet Crab Hybrids are a pooled population of Honeycrisp x M. baccata hybrids and Fuji x M. baccata hybrids. The apples that housed these seeds tend to be large-ish crab apples with crispy, juicy flesh, sweet and astringent (but not sour!) flavors, and high productivity even in a no-spray environment. The Hardy Sweet Crab Hybrids are not "commercial" quality apples, but growers may be able to find good disease resistance, and sizable, palatable fruit in the current seed generation or their offspring. Quality cider apples would not be at all surprising. Growing seeds from this group is the most high-risk, high-reward of any of Dr. Miller's apple populations offered here. As a side bonus, it's likely these trees would make excellent seedling rootstocks, so if the fruit turn out to be duds, growers can topwork them to cultivars of interest.
Key group trait = Resilience
We should emphasize that these seeds come from the selected trees of ongoing breeding work, but are open-pollinated within a genetically-diverse apple orchard. They contain the potential to be great, not so good, or somewhere in the middle. Amy (and the EFN team) will be curious what you find, so please reach out if you discover something noteworthy!
GROWING TIPS: Seeds require some cold-stratification (unless they're already sprouting, which may happen). Put the seeds in a ziplock bag with lightly damp peat moss at 33-38 F for 60-120 days. Seeds will likely sprout a little in the fridge after 60-90 days. Plant those seeds as they sprout. After 90-120 days put the bag at room temperature and the rest will quickly follow suit. Alternatively, you can fall-plant outside 1/4 inch deep, protecting seeds and seedlings from rodents. Plant in full to part sun, continuing to protect young trees from mammals who like to scratch and chew the bark off.
