killerplants.com | Weird Plants | Weird Plants Archive Most Recent | Free Newsletter Signup

Why must apples be grafted?

By Chelsie Vandaveer

April 3, 2003

Also Sponsored By: Gurney's—>Click here.

killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5~~

Suggested Reading—>Click here.

4-in-1 Apple Tree, Julius Caesar's Rome, Engineering an Empire—>Click here.

Apples (genus: Malus Miller) belong to the Rosaceae, the rose family. The trees are native to the north temperate zones of the Old and New World. Pomologists generally agree there are twenty-five species (most are small-fruit 'crabapple' types) and that cultivation of large-fruited apples was well-established about four thousand years ago. Apples can be grown in a wider range of climates than any other temperate zone fruit.

Bee On Apple Blossoms
John Luke
Buy this Giclee Print at AllPosters.com

Hortus Third states, "The taxonomy of the cultivated apples is obscured by centuries of breeding and selection by man, making it difficult to assign modern cultivars to any one species....large-fruited apples are the descendents of M. pumila, native to southwestern Asia, or may be hybrids of M. pumila and M. sylvestris of Europe and southwestern Asia." (L.H. Bailey Hortorium, Cornell University, 1976)

Virgil wrote in his second book of the Georgics (29 BCE), "And often we see the boughs of one turn lightly into another's, and the changed pear-tree bear her grafted apples...." (trans. J.W. MacKail, 1934) Pliny the Elder wrote in the first century, "There are many varieties of apple." He even commented on one grown for the flowers, "The fruit is more like berries than apples, but is especially decorative for terraces...."

Pliny noted, "Grafting has long since been perfected, since people have tried every possibility...." (Natural History, trans. John F. Healy, 1991) As the 'ancients' discovered early, grafting is a necessity with apple cultivars—Granny Smith, Rome, or Delicious would be gone when the original tree died.

Apple seedlings cannot 'come true' to the mother plant. Every seed in an apple has a randomly divided half of the mother's chromosomes and the same for the father's (pollen donor). "All cultivars are self-incompatible, but most cultivars can be effectively pollinated by almost any other cultivar." (Hortus Third) Some apple cultivars simply do not produce viable pollen. The blossoms of one cultivar, 'Apetala', of the originally domesticated Malus pumila do not even have petals or stamens.

J.S. Kim in Korea has posted several excellent photographs of apple species in bloom or fruiting. To view these photographs, click on the link:

http://webdogam.com/page/page196.htm

killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5~~

Sweet Leaf Plant

Gurney Seed and Nursery®

The Natural Sugar Substitute.—Glossy foliage just 10 inches tall, sprinkled with snowy flowers. Dried leaves are 300 times sweeter than sugar. Bring in for the winter. Click here to get $20 off your first order at Gurneys! [More Houseplants...]

4-in-1 Apple Tree

Gurney's Seed and Nursery®

Four Different Apples

Four different apple varieties al on the same tree. The varieties pollinate each other for top crops, then ripen at different times to extend the harvest. Best of all, you only have to care for one tree- ideal when space is limited.

Zones 4-8

This Item Ships In The Spring Click here - $20 off any order for $50 or more at Gurneys.com!

Fruit Trees & Nut Trees For Sale - $20 off any order for $50 or more at Gurneys.com!

The History Channel Presents: Julius Caesar's Rome

The History Channel®

2 disc-set includes 5 bonus documentaries.
The definitive chronicle of one of Rome's greatest emperor.

Experience documentary history at its best and bear witness to the rise and fall of an empire with THE HISTORY CHANNEL® PRESENTS: JULIUS CAESAR'S ROME.

Throughout history, civilizations have come and gone, but few have altered the world as immensely as the Roman Empire. From its legendary founding by Romulus and Remus to its magnificent takeover of the Mediterranean to its eventual fall amidst the rise of Christianity, the many lasting influences of the Roman civilization remain with us today.

Included in this 2-volume DVD set are the following programs:

BIOGRAPHY®: JULIUS CAESAR: MASTER OF THE ROMAN WORLD—From ambition to betrayal, Biography presents the story of Rome's greatest emperor.
ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA—Relive the timeless love story between a Roman general and an Egyptian queen.
THE REPUBLIC OF ROME—From kingship to republic, an empire is born and the foundations of modern democracy launched.
THE AGE OF EMPERORS—From the brilliance of Augustus to the madness of Nero, examine the legacies of godlike men. BUILDING AN EMPIRE--Follow the travels of Hadrian, visit the ruins of Pompeii and revisit the "Golden Age" of Rome.
THE ENDURING LEGACY—Amidst the rise of Christianity, Rome is plundered, but its place in history will never die.

2 Volume Set 322+ Minutes The History Channel Presents: Julius Caesar's Rome DVD set. Clcik here.

Rome: Engineering an Empire DVD

The History Channel®

Exclusive never-before-seen footage shot on a diving expedition in the water channels underneath the Colosseum.
Extensive state-of-the-art CGI animation.

The Roman Empire. Once an insignificant pastoral settlement, it rose to become the most powerful empire in world history over the course of just a few hundred years. It has left a permanent imprint of its material and cultural achievements. At the top of this list: its engineering feats.

Rome wasn't built in a day - but this exclusive DVD set will rebuild it in a matter of hours. The Romans built magnificent palaces and colossal stadiums that dwarfed anything built previously. They left an imprint on technology that looms large over all that we create, and their advancements in engineering-arches, barrel vaults, domed ceilings, and water distribution systems-still influence modern construction.

ROME: ENGINEERING AN EMPIRE is a remarkable special-presentation that chronicles the spectacular and sordid history of the Roman Empire from the rise of Julius Caesar in 55 BC to its eventual fall around 537 AD. Detailing the remarkable engineering feats that set Rome apart from the rest of the ancient world, the program features extensive state-of-the-art CGI animation that will give viewers the chance to see Rome's greatest structures the way the ancient Romans saw them.

The insights of engineers, archaeologists and historians from around the globe add rare depth to segments on Hadrian's Wall, Caesar's Bridge, the aqueducts, the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Baths of Caracalla and more. We'll go inside the remains of Emperor Nero's lavish Golden Palace for a rare look at how one of Rome's most notorious megalomaniacs lived. The special also features exclusive never-before-seen footage shot on a diving expedition in the water channels underneath the Colosseum -- channels once used to flood the arena for bloody mock naval battles.

The wonders of ancient Rome come to life as never before! Rome: Engineering an Empire DVD. Click here.