This is a twig for grafting.Fall. General Stephen P. Gardner intro, Bolton, MA, before 1811. Originally named American Mother. Also known as Queen Anne and Gardeners Apple.
Very high-quality early-Massachusetts dessert apple. In his 1884 The Fruit Manual, British pomologist Robert Hogg called it, “remarkably tender, crisp, and breaking, very juicy, sweet, and with a balsamic aroma.” Medium-large roundish-conic fruit, colored with muted reds and oranges and covered with tiny russet dots. We believe Mother has the potential to be popular in the 21st century on a commercial scale.
General Gardner was a prominent Bolton entrepreneur on the old road between Boston and Greenfield, in what was to become the epicenter of Massachusetts orcharding. There are still almost a dozen orchards in the Bolton area. Keeps into January. Blooms mid-late season. Z4.
Scionwood and early rootstock orders ship around March 10.
Scions are twigs, not trees. They have no roots and will not grow if you plant them. They are cuttings from dormant branch tips, intended for spring grafting.
We do our best to provide ¼" caliper stock. Because of factors beyond our control (such as weather!) stock may be 3⁄16–3⁄8".
We sell scionwood in two ways:
By the stick: One 8" stick will graft 3-4 trees.
By the foot:Minimum order of 10 feet per variety. For orchardists grafting large numbers of trees of a particular variety. In our own nursery work, we are usually able to graft 6-8 trees from one foot of scionwood.
You can graft right away or store scionwood for later use. It will keep quite well for several weeks stored in sealed ziplock bags in the refrigerator.
The deadline for ordering scionwood is February 21, 2025, for shipment around March 10. (Please note: we ship scionwood only in mid-March. If you would like to order rootstock to arrive in the same shipment, select mid-March shipping when adding the rootstock to your cart.)
