Bethel Apple Scionwood

This is a twig for grafting. Winter. Unknown parentage. Bethel, VT, before 1855. Well-known all-purpose Vermont heirloom. Large dark red fruit with prominent dots.

Orchardist and author Michael Phillips wrote to me, “Fruit quality is always excellent, with very little scab and generally too late for maggot fly interest. This is a divine eating apple that first month off the tree. As crispness starts to fade, Bethel still lays claim to being a prime pie apple for the holidays. We use it as well in cider: think pearmain aromatic with body. Apples develop good color even within canopy so I tend not to prune Bethel quite as heavy.” We also like it baked.

Although brighter red than Blue Pearmain, you can see why it’s in a collection of varieties known as the Blue Pearmain group. Blooms later half of midseason. Z3.

7928 Bethel

Item	Discounted From	Quantity
L 7928 A: 8" scionwood stick, 1 for $6.00
L 7928 B: scionwood by the foot (10' minimum), 1 ft for $5.50

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Additional Information

Scionwood

Scions are twigs, not trees. They have no roots and will not grow if you plant them. They are cuttings from dormant branch tips, intended for spring grafting.

We do our best to provide ¼" caliper stock. Because of factors beyond our control (such as weather!) stock may be ³⁄₁₆–³⁄₈".

We sell scionwood in two ways:

By the stick: One 8" stick will graft 3-4 trees.
By the foot: Minimum order of 10 feet per variety. For orchardists grafting large numbers of trees of a particular variety. In our own nursery work, we are usually able to graft 6-8 trees from one foot of scionwood.

You can graft right away or store scionwood for later use. It will keep quite well for several weeks stored in sealed ziplock bags in the refrigerator.

The deadline for ordering scionwood is February 21, 2025, for shipment around March 10. (Please note: we ship scionwood only in mid-March. If you would like to order rootstock to arrive in the same shipment, select mid-March shipping when adding the rootstock to your cart.)

For more info:
About Scionwood