Volume 49 Number 4 Article 36 Pages: 212-213
Year 1995 Month 10
Title: The ´Wijcik Spur McIntosh`
Author: D.V. Fisher
Citation
Abstract:
In the era of the late 1950's, spur
strains of 'Delicious' and 'Golden Delicious' were recognized and proliferated as growers suddenly discovered
previously discounted "runt" trees were
real pomological assets.
By the 1960's
and later, numerous sports of these
and other cultivars had been discovered and patented in the United States.
What was lacking in the British Columbia tree fruit industry was a "spur"
strain of 'Mclntosh,' the cultivar at that
time, most planted.
At a Research
Station Field Day in 1963, a grower
approached me and said he had a
peculiar stunted shoot of 'Mclntosh'
originating adjacent to a cut at the top
of a 50-year-old 'Mclntosh' tree.
He
had discovered this in 1961. I picked
up an empty cigarette package and
hastily wrote down his name and address, intending to visit him.
Unfortunately I lost the package.
Fortunately, two years later (1965)
at a similar Field Day I recognized the
same man, Mr.
Tony Wijcik.
Prior to
harvest I visited his orchard in East
Kelowna and inspected his sport.
Although located in an advantageous
position at the top of the tree in regard
to light exposure, fruit from this sported shoot matured somewhat later than
apples on the rest of the tree and had
only fair color.
The fruit was tightly
packed on the very compact single
shoot measuring about four feet in
length.
Mr.
Wijcik had, by this time,
taken buds and propagated a row of
about 20 trees on M.26 rootstock.
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