Does anyone in the U.S. have this apple for sale/ trade/ donation (either as tree stock or scionwood)??? The English orchardist Stephen Hayes of YouTube fame raves about the "Baker's Delicious" apple as one of the EARLIEST to ripen in the season with a good crisp sweet juicy Cox-like flavor. Apparently it is known to grow well in Wales and southern England at the beginning of their apple season which starts in August (-- USDA Zone 9 equivalent due to their mild winters?).

Has anyone tried to grow this apple in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic? If yes-- When does it ripen for you? Are American summers too hot and humid for this apple? (Or our winters too cold?).

Numerous nurseries in the U.K. sell this variety, but I cannot seem to find it anywhere in the States despite searching exhaustively.

The apple's name apparently has nothing to do with whether it is suitable as a baking apple. Indeed, it is reported to be useful more for fresh eating out-of-hand. Baker's Delicious is said to have been discovered in Wales in 1932 and later introduced by Baker's Nursery which operated in Codsall, England until its closure in the 1960s-- hence the apple is named for the nursery and its proprietor, one Mr. Baker.

I'd like to obtain this apple if it has hope of succeeding in my orchard, which is located in the Maryland mountains, Zone 6b. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks,

-Matt

Scott

WagonWheels Orchard of Gardner, Kansas had previously been grafting apples from Mr. Botner's collection in Oregon but they no longer have access to it. The Botner family is no longer providing scions; their property (including the apple collection) has reportedly been put up for sale.

WagonWheels does not have a backup source for the "Baker's Delicious" apple. I cannot seem to find this variety anywhere in the US...

It's belated, but I wanted to thank you guys for alerting me to the existence of the USDA GRIN. What a national treasure! They provided me with some nice budwood of 4 other apple cultivars this August.

Unfortunately, USDA does not have the Baker's Delicious apple in their collection, and I still have not yet found an American source for this cultivar.

Nick Botner was growing it in Oregon, but he no longer provides scions to the general public. WaggonWheels Nursery of Kansas used to offer rare custom grafts of it, but no longer does so. Mr. Botner was their sole source of scions.

The Home Orchard Society of Oregon has been trying to propagate and plant elsewhere as much of Mr. Botner's collection as they can, but the collection is vast. Last I knew, they were facing a race against time. Not sure if they've had a chance to save Baker's Delicious.

I don't believe nurseries in the U.K. will ship to the U.S.

Bummer I cannot seem to find this apple anywhere in the States. But at least I learned about GRIN in the process. What a tremendous resource. Thank you!

Attached is a pic of some bud-grafts that took. My first attempt at budding, & it worked!

Cheers,

-Matt

Botners collection is finally being propagated by a new nonprofit, so in 3-5 years it should be back "online".

You should know a lot of those English apples don't do well in our hot and humid climate, the skin is not up to snuff or they get mushy or watercore. But some work fine; you never know until you try!

Scott

A "new" nonprofit? Any details on who they are?

BTW-- Ever try growing the Irish Peach apple? It's another early apple from that part of the globe which has become much more readily available throughout the U.S. Tim Hensley of the UrbanHomestead is growing it near the Va/Tn border. Would love to know more about its performance in the humid Mid-Atlantic.

John-- congrats on Winston/WinterKing. Thx for the report.

My goal is to bolster my collection of earlies, hence the obsession w/ IrishPeach & Baker's Delicious. I'm also looking to obtain the Henry Clay apple of Kentucky...

Cheers,
Matt

As much as I like Stephen Hayes (and I really do), I've never seen a single apple in his videos that looked appealing to me. His videos are a treasure trove of information though and I enjoy his personality.

Not sodium chlorate...I dunno what I was thinking. I meant a chlorine based powdered sanitizer.

Congrats on the grafts! Regarding Stephen Hayes, it won't hurt to ask. After all, Nick Botner acquired if from somewhere.