New plantings for the multidisciplinary evaluation of rootstocks and cultivars

It is the goal of the UVM Apple Team to conduct horticultural and integrated pest management  research identified by growers and other members of Vermont's apple industry as important to sustainability and profitability of the industry.  One area identified by the industry is the need for timely information on the attributes and regional adaptability of new cultivars and rootstocks in order to avoid wasting resources on new cultivars and rootstocks that may have serious weaknesses.  To address this goal, we have committed ourselves to the new national plantings of the NC-140 and NE-183 multidisciplinary evaluation of rootstocks and cultivars. 
This spring, the Apple Team has been busy planting new trees. The NE-183 planting consists of 21 promising cultivars (nine of these cultivar selections come from breeding programs where resistance to apple scab is a component in the selection process). Table 2 is a list of these cultivars.

The NC-140 planting consists of 12 dwarf and 9 semidwarf rootstocks. The majority of the rootstocks are from the Cornell-Geneva rootstock breeding program where resistance to fireblight is one of their goals.  In addition, we have several rootstocks from the Supporter series from Germany.  Eight states, including Vermont, are testing McIntosh as the scion and eight other states have Fuji as the scion.  The evaluation protocol for both these plantings are the same as for the 1992 NC-140 and 1995 NE-183 plantings, except for the addition of a pest management component for the NE-183.
The knowledge gained through this evaluation of cultivars and rootstocks will help growers   select cultivars and rootstocks that are adapted to the local environment and will produce high quality fruit capable of competing successfully in the various marketplaces.