2023

     W (on BeaconS) - Continues vigorous, pruned to open up more. Beacon tree doing well. Had a dozen blossoms! Set ten. Two dropped 10/2 (Beacons done almost a month earlier) and another 10/6 with bad bird damage. But good tasting - sweet with mild flavor, good firm-tender texture and moderate juice. Checked others and realized most had bird pecks. Likely best to pick earlier. Total ten apples, good size, nice eating. Pretty muted splashed colors, some with a lightly russet-feeling skin. Good eating through October but getting almost mealy later November. Tree is late to go dormant - leaves still on when Beacon is bare (same as Black Oxford, Canadian Strawberry, Prairie Spy and Smokehouse).

     C - Vigorous growth, had two blossoms. Decided to remove them.

     E - Also vigorous growth and two blossoms (C and E grafted two years after W on small rootstocks). Let one apple set. Smaller than W and maybe not quite ripe but picked 10/6 when picked W's crop. Had late-bagged it to keep birds off so it was clean. Save in root cellar for late test..

2022

     W (on BeaconS) - Cut out dead and dying center of BeaconS down to the Starkey branch, letting it grow up as central leader/top of tree. Leaves looking a bit rough, maybe eaten upon, but overall did fine.

     C - (double bark-graft) - Looks good, vigorous. Cut off smaller of the two grafts.

     E - (graft on a4) - looking good.

2021 - all 3 grafts vigorous, healthy, late to lose leaves in fall.

     W - Had cut upward growing shoot for scions late winter (C & E). Tied branch down more horizontal.

     C - double bark-graft May on a10 ~8 yr old wild crab seedling, south of panels, both grew well ~ 24"!

     E - graft on a4 11 yr old, often cut down, seedling (possibly from Beacon fruit maybe), se of panels, grew 20"!

2020 - Vigorous, healthy, very good strong growth. Unfortunately discovered mushrooms at base of old Beacon stump are Armillaria mellea - Honey Mushroom. Lives on both old AND new (the living tree) wood. Badly infected. Beacon showing signs (see BeaconS). Starkey graft looks fine. Will cut a good scion late winter and graft elsewhere. But hope, and plan, that this tree recovers.

2019 - Scion from Carole, Washington (Quill-GF). Grafted end of May on se short branch of BeaconS in a space where I had removed a larger limb. Grew ~3".

Online Notes: (gf) fresh eating appeal, vig.triploid, w/o watercore issues, pretty. Quite flavorful.