Thanks all. I had read that peach would work but was "short lived"...whatever that means. And I saw one reference to asian type plums working. Konrad, were those euro or asian hybrid plums that you tried? Good full sun space is pretty precious to us, if I can let it grow up a bit and then use it to host multiple grafts then I am inclined to give it the space. But that is sounded dodgy at best. Obviously I could graft more apricot onto it, but they are such a stretch for us I had not planned to try more. I had also considered no grafts and planting it off on the "edge" where it will get rather poor sun but still be close to the other apricots. Leave it purely for the spring flowers to see (and aide pollination) and to possibly use as a "trap tree" for the PC pressure. But I think it would fruit to rarely to use in that fashion.

Sorry, I misread your question. The Duckworth varieties are supposed to be low chill and were bred in Florida but I really know little about them. In trials some varieties have done better than others in the sun and heat. Rappahonnock, which a few years back had won the best tasting pawpaw contest at the Ohio festival, has shown good resilience. Sunflower has also done well in the heat - this one has its fans as well as its detractors.

I'm going to hijack your thread for just a bit, Glenn, and provide some Yacon information. Yacon is a tender perennial related closely to dahlias and sunflowers. It's native to middle elevations in the Andes from Chile to Equador. I grew it for the first time this year. Plants look sort of like a Jerusalem Artichoke with wide, spade-shaped hairy leaves. They get small, yellowish sunflower-like blooms in the autumn, according to the catalogs, but mine did not bloom. The plants grow these amazingly large, sweet potato like tuberous roots underneath the crown. Mine ranged in size from about 4 ounces to well over a pound, and most were probably in the 10 to 16 ounce range. From six plants, I got probably about 2/3rds to 3/4ths of a bushel (didn't measure them exactly, just threw into a box). The tuber has a dark brown skin, which peels easily but which can also be eaten. Texture of the flesh is similar to waterchestnut or jicama, but is more "delicate." Flavor is a very sweet, mild carrot flavor with fruity overtones. I've found it really good in both salads and stirfried dishes. The plant also grows round, inedible, vegetative tubers that look like small Jerusalem artichokes. These are carried over (hopefully it will work for me) to replant the next season. I ordered my three plants from Nichols Garden Nursery in Oregon last spring. They came as nice potted plants about 4 inches tall. Each one had two distinct sprouts, so I separated them at planting and made 6 total. I grew them in large barrels in good soilless mix, kept them well watered and fertilized. The plants got about 4 to 6 feet tall. I dug them in mid-October. So far, the tubers appear to be storing well -- catalogs and internet sources claim that they will store for 6 to 8 months in cool, semi-humid locations. Seeds of Change, I believe, was also offering these plants in their catalog last year. Over at Idigmygarden.com, in either the Heirloom Gardening or General Digging messageboards, there are a couple of yacon threads, and I posted some photos of my plants and crop taken on the day of harvest back in October. I don't have an exact link searched up, but you can find it pretty easily by doing a search for "yacon" if anyone is interested. OK, now that I've put in my plug for Yacon ... back to your regularly scheduled program. Dennis SE Michigan

Thank you speedster for the info. My grandparents had a small orchard about 1 acre. It wasn't anything fancy but I loved that place as a kid. After they were too old to tend the trees and farm the hillside just went wild with peach trees everywhere. lol The trees do produce peaches but are only golf ball size and not very good. The trees range in size from large trees to seedlings. My intention is to dig some of them up and move them to a different location. Use them as rootstock for red haven, contender and other good verities. I just didn't want to wast my time if they would not be as productive and vigorous. In my area I have read that lovell rootstock is good for peach trees. would their be much if any benefit to grafting my trees onto lovell verses using the rootstock I already have? I hope to eventually have about a 5 acre orchard.