Are you gardening too?
Although most of the stuff on The Fruit House site is about fruit tree growing I have recently been enjoying the content on a more garden oriented website, Little Green Yard. Like many backyard orchardists, I also dabble in gardening too. This site has great variety - lots of topics caught my attention. Check it out at: https://littlegreenyard.com/
Inlander Article on Old Apples
Check out an interesting article on old apple varieties grown in our area in the January, 11, 2018 issue of the Inlander.
Lost Apple Project
Mentioned in the article in the Inlander is the Whitman country Lost Apple Project coordinated by David Benscoter. A link to Lost Apple Project Facebook page is found here. It is possible to buy grafted trees of all five of these varieties from the Whitman County Historical Society on M111 rootstock (see column over on right in article, "Grafting and Purchasing"). More about the interest in lost apple varieties can be found here. An Associated Press news item about David Benscoter and E. J. Brandt's work on the Lost Apple Project is found here.
For descriptions and pictures of the apples rediscovered in the Inland Empire by the Lost Apple Project see here. To download a Word document with the descriptions and pictures click here.
Quest for the Kittageskee
There is a great recent post on Ron Joyner's blog about his interest in finding the Kittageskee for his collection of heirloom varieties at Big Horse Creek Farm in Ashe County, North Carolina. It was our own David Benscoter who re-found the apple here in the Northwest (down near Boise, ID). Check out Ron's story here. And consider adding the Kittageskee to your orchard by purchasing a scion of it at the upcoming 2020 Propagation Fair on March 21, 2020. Don't know how to graft yet? There is also a at the same location, also on March 21st, that you can sign up for. Since enrollment will be limited be sure to sign up right away to assure a spot in the class.
And did you see . . .?
And did you see the article about lost apples in the tech and science section of Newsweek for January 21, 2019? Check it out here. An even more recent article about the search for lost apples found its way into the Seattle Time, and includes pictures of lost apple team of of David Benscoter (covering Eastern Washington), E.J. Brandt (covering Idaho), and Joanie Cooper, apple identification expert at the Temperate Orchard Conservancy in Oregon. The three (Benscoter, Brandt, and Cooper) are also seen at work in this Associated Press video segment. On the other side of the country there has been a search of old southern apples that were popular south of New England. There is a great article about this effort to find lost apple varieties in the south in a February, 2020 article titled "The Passing of C. Lee Calhoun: Southern Apple Hunter" that you will find here.
For descriptions and pictures of the apples rediscovered in the Inland Empire by the Lost Apple Project see here. To download a Word document with the descriptions and pictures click here.
Quest for the Kittageskee
There is a great recent post on Ron Joyner's blog about his interest in finding the Kittageskee for his collection of heirloom varieties at Big Horse Creek Farm in Ashe County, North Carolina. It was our own David Benscoter who re-found the apple here in the Northwest (down near Boise, ID). Check out Ron's story here. And consider adding the Kittageskee to your orchard by purchasing a scion of it at the upcoming 2020 Propagation Fair on March 21, 2020. Don't know how to graft yet? There is also a at the same location, also on March 21st, that you can sign up for. Since enrollment will be limited be sure to sign up right away to assure a spot in the class.
And did you see . . .?
And did you see the article about lost apples in the tech and science section of Newsweek for January 21, 2019? Check it out here. An even more recent article about the search for lost apples found its way into the Seattle Time, and includes pictures of lost apple team of of David Benscoter (covering Eastern Washington), E.J. Brandt (covering Idaho), and Joanie Cooper, apple identification expert at the Temperate Orchard Conservancy in Oregon. The three (Benscoter, Brandt, and Cooper) are also seen at work in this Associated Press video segment. On the other side of the country there has been a search of old southern apples that were popular south of New England. There is a great article about this effort to find lost apple varieties in the south in a February, 2020 article titled "The Passing of C. Lee Calhoun: Southern Apple Hunter" that you will find here.
Area Websites With Items of Interest to Home Orchardists
Spokane Country Extension Office
Periodically have events of interest to home orchardists, usually by Master Gardeners or WSU extension specialists
Inland Northwest Food Network
Periodically have events of interest to home orchardists
Spokane Edible Tree Project
Coordinate gleaning efforts and offer other events of interest to home orchardists
Periodically have events of interest to home orchardists, usually by Master Gardeners or WSU extension specialists
Inland Northwest Food Network
Periodically have events of interest to home orchardists
Spokane Edible Tree Project
Coordinate gleaning efforts and offer other events of interest to home orchardists