June, 1933J Pollination and Frtit Setting in the Apple 29 



Because of the scarcity of bunibleliecs, tliis unusual procedure is not 

 dependable. 



A late-blooming sort would not be apt to cause any more successful set 

 on an early blooming sort because the pistils soon begin to disintegrate after 

 full bloom. Even if the pistils have not begun to shrivel, unless flowers 

 are ])romptly pollinated, the ovules may begin to disintegrate before the 

 pollen tubes can reach them. As has already been mentioned, locality may 

 alter to a certain extent the relation of blooming dates among certain 

 varieties. 



V^arieties may be separated into five general classes with relation to date 

 of bloom : very early, early, mid-season, late and very late. Some may have 

 a short and others an extended period of bloom, depending on the positions 

 of blossom clusters on the tree. Most varieties of apples produce the major- 

 ity of their flowers only on spurs arising from wood more than one year 

 old. A few' varieties produce most of their flowers terminally on slender 

 shoots. Some also produce fruit from lateral buds on last season's new 

 shoots. Others yield "flowers in clusters of all three types. 



With trees producing all types the period of bloom covers the longest 

 possible period. When only one type is produced, the period of bloom is 

 exceedingly short. 



With relation to position of clusters, Mcintosh, Gravenstein, Red 

 Astrachan, Melba, Milton, Fameuse, Delicious, Baldwin, Northern Spy, 

 Red Gravenstein and Starking fall in the class of trees coming into full 

 bloom nearly all at once, since their flowers are rarely produced on anything 

 but spurs on older wood. 



Cortland flowers appear both on spurs and terminally, while Wagener, 

 Wealthy, and Winter Banana possess all three types of clusters with rela- 

 tion to position on the tree, with spurs predominating. 



Where more than one type of cluster is present, the order of bloom is, 

 spurs first and usually lateral clusters last. Partly because of this fact Cort- 

 land, Wagener and Wealthy are regularly available as pollenizers, except 

 that Wagener and Wealthy tend to a large extent to bear only in alternate 

 years. 



As classified under the headings, very early to very late, the blooming 

 period of apples in New Hampshire is as follows : 



Very Early — Red Astrachan, Gravenstein, Red Gravenstein. 



Early — Fameuse, Gravenstein, Red Astrachan, Mcintosh, Melba, Milton, 

 Oldenburg, Wagener, Early Harvest. 



Mid-Season — Delicious, Oldenburg,, Cortland, Wagener, Wealthy, Me- 

 dina, Lobo, Winter Banana, Orleans, Starking, Williams, Baldwin. 



Late — Golden Delicious, Cortland, Macoun, Wealthy, Wagener, North- 

 ern Spy, Winter Banana. 



Very Late — Northern Spy, Macoun, Northwestern Greening, Rome, 

 Wealthy, Winter Banana. 



Even in a given class some varieties are slightly earlier than others, and 

 those in one class may overlap into another somewhat. Very young trees 

 may bloom slightly later than mature trees of the same variety. Cortland, 

 Gravenstein, Macoun, Northern Spy, Wagener, Wealthy and Winter 

 Banana are placed under more than one class because of their more or less 

 extended period of bloom. 



