Plant Preview


Welcome to Plant Preview, a blog dedicated to helping gardeners learn about gardening techniques and preview new plant cultivars. Read about new plants here first and hear how your "comrades in compost" are making use of new plant introductions in their gardens and landscapes. Blog author Geri Laufer is a life-long dirt gardener, degreed horticulturist, author and former County Extension Agent. Plant Preview is copyrighted by Geri Laufer.

Monday, February 13, 2012

Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Trees


Blushing Delight™, Golden Treat™, Tasty Red™ and Tangy Green™, yield good taste in a square foot!

Edible gardening is taking the forefront as the locally-grown food movement gains ground, and more and more gardeners are finding success harvesting their own crops. Enter Urban™ Columnar Apples by Garden Debut®, new introductions that yield great tasting apples in a tiny space. Now it’s easy to produce delicious, full-sized apples on slender, vertical trees that grow in large pots on sunny decks or balconies.

Urban™ Columnar Apple trees are loaded with fruiting spurs along the main leader, and branches are short and upright, producing straight, upright-growing, cylindrical apple trees. Plant Urban™ Columnar Apples in the ground, or transplant to large containers coordinated with home and architecture and enjoy moving them around as desired.

Romantic apple blossoms in spring will enchant homeowners, apartment dwellers, condo owners, suburbanites and those short on space. Urban™ apple trees mature at 8 to 10 feet tall but less than two feet in diameter (!) , and are extremely healthy and disease resistant. When grown in full sun expect full-sized fruit the first year from planting, so long as there are two or more varieties for cross pollination. As trees mature, the yield of apples will increase. Be sure to maintain fertility levels for good growth and yields.

The Urban™ Columnar Apple Series was developed by Dr. Jaroslav Tupy of the Czech Republic, a member of the Garden Debut® consortium of growers, breeders, retailers and marketers. Tupy’s choice of four varieties ensures a wide selection of flavor, plus good cross-pollination and fruit set:  

Tasty Red™ is a bright red apple with a sweet, juicy flavor
Blushing Delight™ produces a blush of reddish green fruit with a slightly sweeter taste
Golden Treat™ greenish-gold apples are tart in early fall, but get sweeter the longer they are on the tree
Tangy Green™ lime green apples add a crisp, tart flavor to the series

Harvest tasty fruit within easy reach of the patio table, or host a pick-your-own on the porch and watch heads turn. Try Urban™ Columnar Apples in large tubs flanking the entrance or plant alongside a border or fence to add value. The impact of a loaded apple tree in a tiny space is irresistible.






<-- Blushing Delight™

Statistics Chart for Urban™ Columnar Apple Series:  
Tasty Red(TM) Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Malus 'UEB 3449-1'
Blushing Delight(TM) Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Malus 'UEB 3727-4'
Golden Treat(TM) Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Malus 'UEB 3358-3
Tangy Green(TM) Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Malus 'UEB 3812-2'
Plant Category:
 Deciduous flowering fruit trees
Mature Height:
 8 to 10  feet
Mature Spread:
 1 ½ to 2 feet
Mature Form:
 Extremely narrow, columnar form with multiple fruiting spurs on central leader
Growth Rate:
Vigorous
Sun Exposure:
 Best grown in full sun
Soil Type:
 Garden loam, amended clay, soil-less potting mixes with good fertility
Soil Moisture:
 Moist, well-drained soils
Chilling Requirement:
 800 – 1200 hours for good bud set (number of hours the tempereature is below 45 degrees F. but above 32 degrees F.)   
Flower Color:
 Romantic pink and white apple blossoms on bare branches in early  spring
Fruit Set and Yield:
 Two varieties are required for cross-pollination and good fruit set: expect full-sized fruit from the first year
Fruit:
 Four varieties in the  Urban™ Apple Series provide a wide choice of taste and color on full-sized apples:
Tasty Red(TM) Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Malus 'UEB 3449-1'
Blushing Delight(TM) Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Malus 'UEB 3727-4'
Golden Treat(TM) Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Malus 'UEB 3358-3
Tangy Green(TM) Dwarf Columnar Urban(TM) Apple Malus 'UEB 3812-2'

Summer Color:
Apple green leaf color   
Fall Color:
 Negligible
pH Level:
 5.5 – 7.5
Zones:
4 – 9  (-30 degrees F or 23 Degrees C), well suited for most of the continental U.S.
Heredity:
Developed by Dr. Jaroslav Tupy, Czech Republic for Garden Debut®
                                                           
When performance counts, use Garden Debut® introductions
#   #   # 



15 comments:

  1. Perfect for the potager we are planning this Spring! Thank you so much for posting this!

    Andie

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  2. Thanks for posting! To find a retailer near you that carries Garden Debut plants, visit this webpage and click on your state. http://gardendebut.com/retailers.php The Urban Apples are going to be in short supply with the BIG demand we are seeing! Thanks again. Geri

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  3. HOW MANY GALLONS OR CUBIC FEET OF SOIL PER TREE IS OPTIMAL FOR THE POTS??

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    1. This is an old post but I'll answer anyway for future people needing info. A half whiskey barrel type planter is around 20-30 gallon is perfect. Any pot at 20gal or bigger is ok as long as the soil or mix is properly fertile for the trees needs. I have several columnars growing in wood whiskey barrels I got from Home Depot and they seem to love thier homes. All are heavy fruiters. I have a scarlet sentinel, urban tangy green and urban tasty red varieties. All are around 6ft tall or so.

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    2. Can I use these as a foundation planting? It sounds like the rootball is small and won't disturb the foundation of my house. CORRECT?

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  4. Hi Anonymous, I'm going to assume you are growing the Urban Apples in large containers on deck or patio. I would suggest a large landscape box or at least a 25-gallon container minimum, and be sure the soil is moisture-retentive yet well-drained. And remember, to get fruit you need more than one type of apple to cross pollinate. Best wishes!

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  5. Thank you for all of your helpful info! I am still somewhat confused - if I have a Tasty Red Urban apple tree, will it cross pollinate with a Blushing Delight Urban apple, or Golden Treat, etc...or does it need to be a totally different variety/type of apple tree altogether ? Thank you!

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  6. Any Apple will cross pollinate with any other apple. Also Crabapples. thanks for asking, Anonymous!

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  7. Where can I buy these

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  8. Dear Anonymous, you can find out where to buy them here: http://www.gardendebut.com/Find-A-Retailer

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  9. Are these apple trees GMO?

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  10. If I plant one tree only will it produce any apples at all? Must there be two trees? Must they be of two different varieties? How close to each other must they be planted?

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  11. When should I harvest my urban golden treat? I'm in US planting zone 6.

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  12. Hi Anonymous, harvest when ripe, not a specific time or date. Good eating! Geri

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  13. How far apart can I plant multiple trees and still get cross pollination? Also how many years do these trees live?
    Thank You.

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