Hey all,
We are planning a new orchard and hoping to find a good mix of varieties that will produce and thrive on the Oregon Coast. We are a few miles inland near Toledo with a south facing slope, in soil that was orchard many years ago but has been turf lawn for quite some time now. There is a great apple tree on site that is one of the only remaining full size specimens and it is a 'Northern Spy'. We love this style of apple for its storage qualities and flavor but have been looking for others that might produce well on the coast. We went to the Lane County Scion Exchange last year and are gearing up for another round this coming season. Is there anyone out there who has some local knowledge or maybe some suggestions for a valley transplant/newbie? BTW our plan so far is for a mixture of apples, plums, cherries and pears
I would look into apples that do well in short seasons. Many varieties come out of Minnesota. Honeycrisp is one. I tried to grow Calville Blanc D'Hiver near Seaside. It didn't grow. It needs more heat. I would consider apples from England or the Netherlands, in particular, smaller apples, which might not need that much heat or sun.
John S
PDX OR
Following on from John S advice, it sounds like the pacific north west coast is one of the closest climates in the US to the climate of England, so English or north European varieties would be a good idea. Of the mid-season varieties, consider Lord Lambourne or Alkmene or James Grieve. Cox's Orange Pippin is possible too, not particularly reliable (Warren Manhart calls it "frustrating" in his excellent book) but I always think it is worth a try because of the insight it gives into the flavor potential of apples. The English russets such as Egremont Russet and St. Edmund's Russet will probably do well too, and are good for cider as well as eating fresh.
Regarding plums, I reckon European plums would be better for your location than the Japanese ones - and the flavor is better too (I would say that of course). It is also worth trying a Damson, which would probably do well in your area - they have a very distinctive flavor and are great for cooking (not eating fresh though).
I would agree with Orange Pippin on the likelihood of successfully growing Japanese plums there. I tried to grow the variety"Hollywood", which grows amazingly easily in Portland. However in Seaside (on the coast) it just stayed at a one gallon size for 8 years. I however, prefer the tangy, more complex taste of an Asian plum, but if I lived on the Oregon Coast, there wouldn't seem much of a point in growing them.
I would try ediblecrabapples, since they are small and don't need as much heat to ripen. I would start with varieties like Whitney or Dolgo, which ripen here in August, and then try Wickson, my favorite crab, which ripens here in Oct. Then I'd go to still small Northern apples, before trying a large apple. I believe the Oregon Coast gets less heat and sun even than most of England, although it is similar. There are places where people have calculated the heat units, but I don't have the list.
John S
PDX OR
Keep in mind that Toledo has an average summer temperature 10-15 degrees hotter than Newport when thinking about heat units. I'm not sure about exact numbers but we are better situated out of the summer marine layer and somewhat protected from drying winds. Here is a list of varieties that we grafted last year at the Lane County Scion Exchange. Some of these are obviously not going to do well on the coast (Pink Parfait) and will be heading to a relatives parcel in Silverton. Anyways here's a list of what we have so far.
Lady's finger offaly, Pink Parfait, Rhode Island Greening, Yellow Bellflower, Spigold, Baldwin, Siberian Red Crab, King of Pippen, Claygate Pearmain, York Imperial, Tompkins King, Ribston Pippin, Williams Pride, July Red Crab, Spitzenberg, Centennial Crab, Fameuse, Northern Spy and Golden Russet.
Hopefully this fall harvest we will be able to taste some of these but for now we have taken a leap of faith. Thanks for all of the suggestions thus far.
I am located in Lincoln City so we are a bit more challenged by wind than your Toledo location. Still I have had great success with a 'Frost' peach trained against a south-facing wall. I have a 3-way pear & 3-way apple (both espalier) on a fence that don't get enough sunlight due to the confines of my city lot, yet the Liberty apple grafts produce nicely each year. So far I only get a pear here and there. There are some huge cherry trees across the street that seem to only produce the tiny sour cherries and the birds get them... however as a former cherry grower in the valley, I will recommend you look for cherries with low chilling requirements. You might visit Blake's nursery in Gleneden Beach if you get up this way, he has a lot of knowledge and good inventory of fruit trees.
Idyllwild
simplepress
jafar
Marsha H
Viron
John S
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