Melmoth: Chinese is self fruitful as are many but not all apricots. I'd try Tomcot based on it's excellent record for dependable production and high fruit quality. They will pollinate each other, but don't need it.

The Fruitnut

Thanks. You mean that Tomcot and Chinese will bloom around the same time? I guess that's what matters--along with fruit flavor, of course. I thought to get two trees for variety and also because even self-pollinating trees supposedly crop better with another cultivar nearby.

And then there's the whole rootstock uncertainty for semi-dwarfing. Given that I'll have only two trees, I'm trying to take the right steps first time around.

None of the apricot rootstocks dwarf enough to make much difference. Growing conditions, some of which you can control, and summer pruning are your major ways to control tree size. I don't know that they will bloom together. It depends somewhat on your weather. I've seen both listed as being late blooming for a cot. I haven't grown Mormon. But can say that Tomcot does very well for me and many others who've posted here.

The Fruitnut

Melmoth:

I have had a dozen different apricot varieties over the past 30 years, including one called Chinese. I still have a Goldcot and a Puget Gold, but expect those will be coming out soon.

My advice is very simple: Get rid of the Chinese Mormon you have already planted, and, if you want two apricot trees, plant two Tomcots. All the other apricots I have planted were failures for a variety of reasons, but the net result was no apricots. In contrast, Tomcot produces for me each and every season, in late June, sometimes a smaller crop after a very late freeze, but always something worthwhile. My Tomcot trees are now nearly 20 years old, and completely healthy. They receive dormant sprays of copper, and the fruit is sprayed early with Imidan at thinning time. Plum curculio can be a problem on any apricot early in the season.

In a good year, with minimal late freezing temps, my two Tomcot trees will bear over 150 pounds of beautiful, perfect apricots of very high quality. I don't really understand what is so different about Tomcot, but if science consists of repeatable results, this apricot meets the test. Tomcot is self-pollinating, so there would be no pollination concerns and the trees should end up at the same final size.

Agree with fruitnut that rootstock differences seem to play a minor role, although St. Julian does grow slower initially. The trees all seem to end up at roughly the same size, and require annual pruning to keep them open and uncrowded, as well as to control vertical height.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Note that Don is not in a similar climate to yours. His full throated endorsement of Tomcot seems prevalent on this forum and I certainly intend to try it, but I know enough about the difference of apricot performance from region to region to provide you with at least one caveat.

Self-fertility in apricots seems to be uneven as you get to colder regions. I don't know what the specific reasons are but in colder climates it seems that apricots are more consistantly fruitful with a pollinator. I noticed this tendency about 15 years ago, having moved to NY from CA. All the literature I was aware of spoke of apricots being self-fertile but I noticed that on sites with 2 varieties I got considerably more consistant cropping.

I certainly didn't have enough sites to prove my hypothesis but a few years ago I noticed that Adams suggested the need for a pollinator for apricots on the east coast. I'm guessing they have a firmer foundation for this assertion than I do.

Thanks, everyone. About climate zones and ditching my present tree: I'm supposing that there is some good reason for the prevalence of Chinese Mormon in this area's nursery wholesellers. The late blooming and winter hardiness can matter a lot, apparently. And the agricultural officers in two different state extensions said I'd do best with a pollinator match.

Is your tree grafted or a seedling? If it's a seedling all bets are off, of course. It's quality will be in question until it fruits. At least it would mean that another tree from the same nursery would probably function as a pollinator if it requires one.

I wouldn't necessarily assume that your local nurseries have any kind of handle on best performing apricots- I know where I am most nurseries, including every single wholesaler, are absolutely clueless about all types of fruit plants. They tend to carry stonefruit that is hardier than needed at the sacrifice of quality. You might try the NAFEX thread. There are several members growing Mormon varieties in similar climates to yours I think.

I understand that this tree has some kind of semi-dwarfing rootstock, but the supplier could not say what rootstock. In any case, there is a clear seam or whatever it's called under the main trunk, so I planted the tree with that seam a couple inches above the soil. But is Chinese Mormon not a high quality apricot? If that were true, I would be willing to dig it out.

I found the Chinese/Mormon to be quite good out of hand and the jam was superb. My tree, on unknown rootstock, did well for several years, but I think I either drowned it, over did the summer pruning and de-invigorated it, or some combination of the two. At any rate, I think I killed it. But it produced large crops of large, round, plump 'cots and it managed to time frosts pretty well too. (I'm in a fairly temperate part of western Montana.)

But I'll be replacing it with a Tomcot, based on the advice here, on one of the rootstocks that is happier with wet feet.

Good luck,

M

It may be a climate difference, but my experience has been that cross pollination of your apricots will improve fruit set. I see trees around the area that seem to produce without a nearby pollinator, and others (one which I had) that never do. But, after planting other varieties nearby, even the non-fruitful tree has started producing apricots. It might be something else, but it seems that instead of getting apricots 2 or 3 times in 10 years, I'm getting bumper crops 2 or 3 times in 10 years and at least a few fruit every year, even when most of the blossoms freeze. So I think having a cross pollinator will at least help.

With pears, it's about spring temps. With warm weather some varieties of pears produce fruit without viable seeds (my mind refuses to hold the word- parthenocarpically?). Some time ago Bartletts were grown commercially in S. Calif. without other varieties because in that climate cross pollination was no advantage- trees produce reliably without it.

Apricot trees ability to produce fruit is not based on this ability so I don't know why the variation from growing them in warmer climates and colder. In warmer climates they apparently are self-ferile, meaning they pollinate there own flowers because their pollen is compatable within varieties. My guess is just that the cold-hardy varieties are not as self-fertile. Anyone out there have any specific knowledge on this? Go googsperts, do your thing. I love a good researcher.

I have found a CA source (Sanhedrin) for Moorpark with a Citation rootstock, and then Willis in Georgia has it with St Juilian A. Each rootstock is supposedly "semi-dwarfing." I'll appreciate any comments if people think either the rootstocks, the vendors, the shipping distances, etc., matter much in these options. Thanks!