Alan: There is something fundamentally wrong about a 5-in-1 apple tree that has reached 25 feet tall. Can you recall how many years it has taken to reach this size, and perhaps the original source of the tree? Multigrafted trees are normally sold on dwarfing or semi-dwarfing rootstocks, and would never be expected to become this large. If the tree came from a dubious nursery source, you may have something quite different from a grafted 5-in-1 tree -- something like a tree on a seedling rootstock, or perhaps not a grafted tree at all. You have not yet told us whether or how much the tree blossoms in the spring. If a tree blossoms freely but does not set fruit, pollination problems may be suspected, but if the blossoms are sparse to nonexistent the tree sounds more like a seedling -- especially given the quality of the few apples as you describe them. You may have been snookered. Also, please tell us where you live in zone 8. Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Almost all apples and crab apples can pollinate each other, so as long as you have different kinds, I wouldn't worry about it. Crabapples are particularly good pollinators because they bloom for a long time. More importantly, what kinds are you planting exactly? When you say you've started some trees, do you mean from seed? Apple seedlings are very variable. They'll resemble their parents only as much as, say, we resemble our own parents. And if you don't know who the father (pollen parent) was, it's even harder to predict what the offspring will be like. What if that tasty light red apple of yours was pollinated by a tiny sour crabapple? If I were you, I'd make sure I knew exactly what I was planting, and buy some grafted trees. Then again, it can be fun to be surprised, so if you like surprises, enjoy.

With the exception of some triploids that cannot pollinize at all, any apple variety can pollinate any other apple variety as long as bloom periods overlap. IOW, avoid a very early season apple with a late season apple. FWIW, Fuji, Honeycrisp and Red Delicious are all midseason bloomers so should offer adequate cross pollination for each other. As Ken mentioned, late freezes during the bloom period and lack of pollinators (bees) can certainly affect fruit production.

Thanks, Willy. I'm pretty much hearing that about the Dorsetts - they really aren't that tart. I think this is what my sister has, and if so, my gosh. Her tree must have had over 100 apples on it every year, and it is a well established dwarf. More than you could possibly eat as a family of 5! And the leaves not dropped are kind of a trait with both Anna and Golden Dorsetts. Just strip off the leaves at the end of the season. That way, they don't hang around and harbor fungii or scab. And my Anna did the same very, very weird thing this year (several folks have said this has happened to them as well in S. Calif) - Flowered in November, and I had 3 apples mature about a month ago! I had late blooms and 3 little apples ended up being ripe in January. They were very small but very sweet. Very weird. Must be due to the odd weather we had last year, and not a very hot summer. So right now, think I'll pick up a Dorsett Golden, a Pink Lady, some cross pollinator for the Pink Lady, and maybe a 3,4 or 5-in-1 that Bonita Creek has just for fun. And my two cherry trees. I'll let everyone know how these Minnie Royal and Royal Lee do. I'm about 7 miles from the ocean, and we just don't get too many nights under 45 degrees (although this last week has been really cold). I have heard nothing but good about them, so I'm expecting great things! Now, if I can just keep the animals and birds away, I'll have some fruit for myself :-) Patty S.