Persimmon trees are male and female, and it takes at least one of each to have persimmons. The fruit will grow only on the female tree. Unfortunately, it is not possible to tell whether the tree is male or female when they are this young. You won’t be able to tell until they are 3 to 5 years old.  We recommend that you purchase at least 2 trees unless you already have persimmons in the location. However, we cannot guarantee that they will be male and female, so if you have room, more is better.

Persimmons are native to this area, so they are a great native tree to plant. If you do get fortunate enough to end up with a male and a female, and thus one of the trees produces persimmons, they are a good food source for both humans and wildlife.

Did you know that another name for persimmons in “Sugar Plums”? No, it wasn’t a plum that the “Sugar Plum Fairy” was named after. It was a persimmon. Persimmons are incredibly sweet when ripe, but so sour they are inedible if underripe. And, strangely enough, persimmons are not ripe until they look like they are rotten. The skin will be wrinkled and the fruit mushy. If you attempt to eat a persimmon that is underripe, it isn’t toxic, but it will cause mouth and throat dryness and irritation due to a tannin that exits in the fruit before it ripens. Though, the fruit is so sour at that point that it is not likely most people would care to consume one.

Persimmon trees grow 10′ to 30′ tall and can bear fruit for up to 75 years. They begin to fruit at about 4 to 9 years. The persimmon fruits are about the size of a golf ball and will be bright orange.

Fun fact: Persimmon trees can only grow in higher elevations and, thus are well-suited to Garrett County and the surrounding area.

Potomac has good taste, with pleasing subacid notes. It is a green pear with fine textured skin. It may develop a red blush where the sun hits it.

Potomac is cold-hardy. We have placed it on a rootstalk that is also Fireblight resistant and cold-hardy. It will be drought tolerant and freestanding at maturity.

Bartlett, Red Bartlett, and the pear varieties we sold last year will all pollinate Potomac.

There is one negative to Stanley though. It does not have any disease resistance and is highly susceptible to Black Knot, which is extremely difficult to treat and often results in the death of the tree.

Stanley is self-pollinating but it will produce better with a pollinator like Long John or Bluebyrd. Fruit is ripe in early September.

Stanley is free-stone, so the pit pulls out easily. It is good eaten fresh, in baking, and dried. Stanley is considered a prune plum, which means that the fruits can also be dried or canned to make prunes.

The tree blooms late, which is great for Garrett County. It is a reliable producer, and is very cold-hardy, surviving as low as zone 4.  You will not want to plant this tree in heavy clay soil. 

Jonaprince is notorious for its brilliant red color and firm, crisp flesh. It is prized as a fresh-eating apple. The large-sized apples store and ship well. The taste is sweet with just enough tart to make it well balanced.  Flavor tents in increase if it is stored.

Jonaprince ripens around the beginning of September.

Jonaprince is a natural mutation of a Jonagold tree, found in the Neitherlands in 1994. It is a descendant of Jonathan and Golden Delicious.

It blooms mid-season, so good companions are Yellow Transparent, Summer Rambo, and Smokehouse. See our “Product Snapshot” page for a list of compatible pollinators.

The flavor of the JonaMac is similar to Macintosh. They have a firm texture and deliver a crisp bite. They are generally used as an eating apple rather than in desserts or canning due to their crispiness. Ever watch those commercials where someone bites into an apple and it gives this crunchy sound? Think JonaMac!

When ripe, the apples are a deep red, with a tinge of green underneath. Medium size. The taste is sweet with a hint of strawberry.

It is resistant to Cedar Apple Rust but somewhat susceptible to Apple Scab, so it is recommended that you prune the tree yearly to allow air to flow between the branches.

Jonamac has an extended bloom season and will pair well with early bloomers like Summer Rambo and mid-season blossoms like Smokehouse. See our “Product Snapshot” page for a list of compatible pollinators.

We have placed this tree on a rootstalk that sends its roots deep and is further cold-tolerant. It will be drought tolerant.

As is the case with so many of the heirlooms native to the region, it has good natural disease resistance, and it is super cold-hardy, easily growing in climates as cold as zone 3.

Smokehouse is good for cooking, baking, cider, and eating fresh. It will keep for several months when stored properly. It is a large, flattish-shaped, yellow apple with red stripes. It is known to be a reliable bearer. The apple is tender and very juicy and has often been described as tasting like apple cider.

Smokehouse is a late season bloomer, which is great for Garrett County. For pollination, it would pair well with Crimson Crisp, Northwest Greening, and other late season bloomers on our list.  See our “Product Snapshot” page for details on its pollinators.

The tree is known for its extreme cold-hardiness, with some trees documented to have survived temperatures to -50 F.  It ripens in late September and is resistant to Fireblight and Cedar Apple Rust.

Northwest Greening apples are very large, with some reaching 5″ in diameter. They turn a light yellow when ripe. The old-timers were particular fond of this apple because it will hang on the tree well into the winter and can still be used for baking and sauces well after the snow flies.

Northwest Greening apples are great for sauce, pies, and other baking. But they are not a good fresh-eating apple. They have a mild sub-acid flavor that pairs well in desserts.

It is a late-season bloomer and makes a great pollinator for other apple trees in that bloom range, including Crimson Crisp.

An unusual characteristic of the Arkansas Black is that they aren’t as tasty right off the tree. You need to pick them and store them, and after several weeks they develop a sweet, crunchy flavor that is favored across the US. Arkansas Black will store up to six months if kept in proper storage.

Another standout characteristic is that the apple’s skin is such a deep, dark, burgundy that it looks black; Hence the name.

Arkansas Black is a mid-season bloomer, and it will need two pollinators instead of just one. Be aware that not every variety can pollinate it. Of the ones we have available, you can use Fuji, Golden Delicious, Yellow Transparent and Freedom.

Arkansas Black is shorter, with a wider spread than many apple trees. We have it on a standard rootstalk but look for it to grow to be only 12′ to 20′, with most being around 15′.

Bartlett is the pear of choice for northern growers, and it was our number one most requested tree last year in pears! In fact, Bartlett is so sought after, that when we started our sale this year, we couldn’t get our hands on a Bartlett. We now have a few, but it is only a few. So, if you want one, order soon.

Bartletts are great for fresh eating, canning, and baking. They are super-cold-hardy and have good disease resistance.

Bartlett is an heirloom that is still heavily planted. It was originally discovered in 1765 by a schoolmaster in England named Mr. Stair. So, originally, they were known as Stair’s Pear. A nurseryman named Williams bought the variety from Mr. Stair and began propagating it. Over in Europe, our Bartlett is known as their Williams Bon Chretien (which means “Williams Good Christian”). It is simply called the Williams for short.

Please be aware that both Red and Yellow Bartletts do not have much disease resistance. We’ve offered Bartletts because they are much-loved heirlooms, but you need to be aware that they may be susceptible to a variety of disease, some of which could be deadly to the tree. Potomac has better disease resistance but is not an heirloom.

Bartlett pears go from green and firm to yellow and soft as they mature, which makes it possible to pick them at whatever preferred taste and texture stage you prefer. The more soft and yellow, the sweeter the pear.

The peaches are medium to large with sweet, yellow flesh. Interestingly, Contender peach slices do not brown quickly when exposed to air, so they look nice on a platter. (Think of all those covered dish dinners where you could take sliced peaches!) It is freestone and excellent for fresh eating, canning, and baking.

Like the other two varieties we are offering, Contender needs 1000 chill hours to fruit. Therefore, you should not plant this peach in a warm climate.

Contender received the 2014 American Society for Horticultural Science Outstanding Fruit Cultivar award. It was originally developed through a breeding program started in 1951, focused toward creating a variety that would be resistant to bacterial spot and fruit between the other two main cultivars, Loring and Elberta. Contender was born out of that program in 1988 and has since gained world-wide respect for its consistency and productivity to both fresh and commercial markets. It is the standard peach in northern areas. It is somewhat resistant to Bacterial Spot.

Peach trees do need full sun and well-drained soil. Additionally, you should prune peach trees yearly, keeping 1′ to 3′ new growth. Contender is self-pollinating but the fruits will be more abundant and bigger if you use another variety of peach to pollinate. Both Veteran and Raritan Rose will pollinate it.

Contender pits are more toxic than some peach pits. DO NOT crush and eat them or use them for medicinal purposes.