Where to Purchase Dwarf Apple Trees

My nephew would like an apple tree but due to yard space it will need to be a dwarf or semi-dwarf tree. I appreciate suggestions of types and vendors. Thanks in advance.

Zone 4b is a large zone. It would help to know here you are located?

Tree will be in Southwestern South Dakota - - on the border of 4b-5a.

This message was edited Jan 10, 2009 6:31 PM

Many apple varieties need another variety for pollination. So unless you choose a good self pollinater,can you plant 2 dwarf? Out on the windy prairie you may need posts to keep dwarf trees from blowing over.

This link is for finding apple orchards in South Dakota, but since it also lists the cultivars, it should give you an idea of the apple trees that would grow there.
http://www.allaboutapples.com/orchard/sd.htm
From SD Cooperative Extension click on Fruit Varieties for South Dakota
http://agbiopubs.sdstate.edu/process.cfm?Dept=hflp
I've purchased apple trees from:
http://www.raintreenursery.com/
Look through the nursery list provided by the California Rare Fruit Growers:
http://www.crfg.org/nurlist.html
If your nephew has room, he would be better off getting a semi-dwarf tree. Tree height varies depending on the dwarfing root stock. Semi-dwarf trees don't need staking. Dwarf trees will need staking and are best used as espaliered trees.

bettydee:

thanks for the information. Would you suggest purchasing from Raintree Nursery?

I would! I have always received great looking trees with the exception of one tree. A graft problem developed a few months after I planted it, but I called them, explained the problem and was promised a new tree the following year because it was out of stock. They replaced it the following season.

Raintree is great!

Trees of Antiquity, some apples have a choice of rootstock; dwarf, semi-dwarf or standard.

I order from them all the time; super trees!

CC

Thanks for the suggestions!

mrs_colla: how do I search for dwarf or semi-dwarf? I stated such in the "search" radio button but I get 142 selections so I believe it is showing the entire list of apples. How can I narrow my search? Thanks.

Decide on the variety first. Try to choose an apple on the list of trees grown in apple orchards in South Dakota. Don't go with trees that don't require many chill hours or they will break dormancy too soon. Then take a look at the description of apple rootstocks:
http://www.treesofantiquity.com/index.php?main_page=page_6
It looks like Trees of Antiquity carries on two types of rootstock, semi-dwarfing and dwarfing.
RainTree Nursery has a few more.
http://www.raintreenursery.com/
I've also ordered from Bay Laurel Nursery. They have a few options as well
http://www.baylaurelnursery.com/order/clicksite.cgi?cart_id=&xm=on&ftr=Apples&p=Apples

I looked at all the available apples and checked their individual choices... I know, easy it is not... But the quality of their stock makes up for it, that's a promise! ( I am not affiliated with them, just a fan of their trees!)

I just got a low chill "Anna" apple, on a dwarf rootstock ( M9 I think) and also a "Newtown Pippin" on a dwarf rootstock.

Some trees give you a choice of semi-dwarf/ dwarf, some will give you standard/semi-dwarf.

CC

Mrs_colla, there 6 stations monitoring chill hours near, 2 in Marin County and 4 in Sonoma County. The average chill hour accumulation vary from a high of 868 at Black Point to a low of 537 at Point San Pedro. The four in Sonoma County are in the 600 hour range. The chill hour requirement for "Anna" is 200 hours and 700 hours for Newton Pippin. Since the hours given for your area are only an average, there will be years when you get more or few chill hours. So it's usually best to err on the low side and get trees that require about 100 hours less than your average. When the chill hours required by a fruit are well below what is received in your area, there will be a tendency for the tree to break dormancy early exposing the flowers and/or the fruit to frost damage. If the number of chill hours required is greater than what you get, dormancy break won't be met some years leading to possible damage to the flowers, fruit and tree. If the difference is much greater than what you get, the tree stress sufficiently that it becomes prey to diseases, sicken and die. I lost several apple trees that way. We moved from San Jose to central Texas and I brought my plants with me including several potted dwarf apple trees. Within 2 years, the 3 apple trees, that required more chill hours than the 600 we have here, were all dead.

Chill hours are important, that is why I mentioned it to rockette.

My nursery counts chill hours, and we had about 800 so far.
Blackpoint : 1186
San Pedro : 602 These are the most current counts.

I just used those trees I bought as an example of trees grown on 2 different rootstocks, I wasn't suggesting them for anyone.

CC

Oh my! what should I know about chill hours. Explain chill hours. Do I look for certain trees with certain chill hours? Thanks.
Right now we are enduring a blizzard with winds up to 50 mph, air temp of 9 and windchill of 25 below. I am 'chill'ed! ^_^

Chill hours refers to the number of hours the temperature is between 32ºF and 45ºF usually recorded between November 1 to the last day in February. There are several formulae for figuring this out since hours are subtracted from the total for warm days. This is the link for California"
http://fruitsandnuts.ucdavis.edu/chillcalc/index1.htm
A fruit tree or shrub has to undergo chilling to help the plant break dormancy. The number of hours a fruiting plant needs depends on the variety. I explained why it is important to get fruit trees and shrubs whose chill hour requirements are close to the number of chill hours the home grower gets. If you cut it too close, there may be years when the area may not get the number listed so it's best to stay below that number.

Rockette, the best place to find out how many chill hours your nephews area gets is for him to contact his local Cooperative Extension Office and ask. Another way to do it is to use the list I provided. Here's the link again. Find the nearest orchard to where your nephew lives. Look at the list of apples that orchard grows and choose from that list. A commercial grower will not risk his income by purchasing varieties that won't grow well in his area.
http://www.allaboutapples.com/orchard/sd.htm
There may be other varieties that will grow well, but those will take more research.,

Thanks for the information.

Betty, in South Dakota there is way more chill than you will ever need. In fact I bet they would be happy to ship some to California about now :-)

Rockette, all you need to worry about is the other end of the temperature scale, the hardiness. Most apple varieties are hardy in zone 5 but maybe one in four won't make it there. Look for a nursery that lists hardiness along with the varieties.

Scott

Along with hardiness comes maturity dates. In South Dakota there are some varieties that would not have enough time to fully mature. properly.

This morning it was -25 air temperature, no wind(thank goodness). I did locate an orchard in SD!!! I will check varieties and purchase accordingly.
I appreciate all the information.

scottsmith - - we would be delighted to ship 'chill' to anywhere! ^_^

You definitely need to go with semidwarf with those temperatures. My favorite nurseries so far have been Cloud Mountain Farm, Trees of Antiquity and Grandpa's Orchard. The have dwars, semidwarfs and some standards. If you have to go with dwarfs due to size of lot or a desire for variety, you might be able to take some exceptional precautions like building a temperary shelter around the little orchard in winter.