M.4 

 P.18 

 A.313 

 B.490 

 M.7 EMLA| 

 Seedling ^ 

 MAC.1 § 

 P.1 ^ 



eel 



M.26 EMLA 



MAC. 39 



B.9 



P.2 



P.1 6 



P.22 



ab 

 ab 



be 



c 

 c 



cd 



cd 



de 



10 



15 



20 



Cumulative yield per tree (bu) 



Figure 2. Cumulative yield (per tree, 1987-93) of Starkspur Supreme Delicious trees on various 

 rootstocks. Means are significantly different at odds of 19:1 if bars are not followed by the same 

 letter. 



low both. Qiiicker return on the investment of 

 establishment, potentially higher yields, higher 

 packout because of better light penetration into 

 the canopy, less pesticide needed to treat each 

 acre, and lower labor needs for harvesting and 

 pruning all make dwarf trees a very desirable 

 alternative when compared to semidwarf or 

 standard trees. 



In the last issue of Fruit Notes, I gave the 

 final report of a rootstock trial that began in 

 1980 as part of a cooperative planting of the NC- 

 140 Technical Research Committee. In this 

 article, I will detail the final report of the Mas- 

 sachusetts portion of the 1984 NC-140 Coopera- 

 tive Apple Rootstock Plgmting. 



Materials & Methods 



Starkspur Supreme Delicious trees on B.9 

 (Budagovsky 9), B.490, MAC.l (Michigan Agri- 

 cultural College 1), MAC.39, P.1 (Polish 1), P.2, 

 P.16, P.18, P.22, M.4 (Mailing 4), M.7 EMLA, 

 M.26 EMLA, C.6, A.313 (Antonovka 313), and 

 domestic seedling were planted at a spacing of 

 12 X 18 feet at the University of Massachusetts 

 Horticultural Research Center in the spring of 

 1984. Trees were trained as central leaders 

 using minimal pruning and limb spreading as 

 needed. Containment pruning was required for 

 many of the larger trees. Stakes were added for 

 support only when trees leaned more than 45 



12 



Fruit Notes, Summer, 1994 



