That is such fantastic news to me Matt, thank you so much :) I am on the hunt for Precious Apricot tree scion now, it is suppose to do well here in zone 2... I think my Casino will love a sidekick down the road haha

You won't find anything but westcot,casino or manchurian around here. the best you will get for here is the westcot ,capilano or from the trees in calgary. you could try and find brookcot or m604

Costco does sell apricots but not hardy ones. i doubt anybody has tried any of them in cold zones so who knows maybe they are hardy. They are only bareroot supplier I know of that shipping doesn't cost as much as the tree and you get 1 year warranty.

Thank you so much Matt, it will be so much fun to see what all they sell... I never knew they sold fruit trees. Thank you so much for enlightening me :D

They currently have nothing on Costco.ca .

They have a 3 month season in spring they sell trees online. The have garden centers in spring also and sell fruit trees

That is so exiting my friend! I can't wait to see what they will have come spring! Are they pretty fairly priced in your opinion? I have room for at most 4 more trees in my yard I have 1 pear tree coming this coming spring from Konrad, the next spring I have a Capilano Apricot tree coming from Konrad. If I find a semi dwarf Apple root stock I have a local Apple tree I want to graft. From there ... If I can get my hands on a local plum tree I want to graft it as well. It had the most perfect flavor and texture, not any bitterness or tartness at all. This apparently is the plum tree that had only fruited once in 20 years. I got to taste two of the plums about 8 years ago. It is the red tree.

Apparently it has never suckered or suffered winter kill.

Hmmm, I wonder if these Plums I am talking about could be 75% Plum/ 25% Apricot? That might explain the zero bitterness or tartness and being very close the color of an Apricot but very smooth like a Plum? It is nice and sweet, to die for flavor. The shape of the tree kind of resembles an Apricot tree slightly? This tree is a mystery Plum big time lol

So that one on the left..had seen some better years lol...could use a bit of rejuvenating, cut out some of the limbs which don't look good to get light in.

Don't need this many! Also other dead branches on top plus others so they don't intertwine.

It might be hard to graft onto a old tree, [too far out the branches] you might get some new wood/branches forming along the stems after a good pruning, normally this happens, [water sprouts] then graft onto these the following year, these new branches will have good energy to push your scion's.

That really means tons to me Konrad, I will work on getting permission on pruning that mystery Plum tree. Fingers crossed the following year it has grown enough new growth to use it as root stock and possibly fruits due to being pruned.... then I could use some seeds as root stock. I dont want this awesome tree to die without re creating him a few times to keep this guys line going. I pray I get permission to take care of his tree for a couple springs. This is going to keep me up at night lol

when they get so ripe they are soft lots don't really even have tart flavor . Our apricots don't pollinate our plums here. The apricot blooms couple weeks before . I've tried hand pollination to make plumcots but it never works? Maybe the temperature needs to be a lot warmer for hybridizing like that.

That is so interesting Matt! I would be so very excited for you, it would be such a massive success! You guys fascinate me with you imaginations and actions to achieve, you rock!

I think the hardy peach can be the answer for us here. They bloom like a month after apricots do .this years project for me is to breed a hardy peach with an apricot like westcot .could get a later blooming peachxapricot that takes enough hardiness from the apricot and the later blooms from the peach I think we will have something in the works this spring. We could use plums but the open very early to. Peach is way later.

I am def gonna follow your efforts and cheer you on! May I ask what kind of Peach it is that is hearty for your area? I am wishing I had a bigger yard lol

No idea. he called it a Chinese peach .it was standing about 8ft tall and stock was as thick as a beer can.i think its a native peach from northern China manchuria where it gets cold like here

That is so exiting!!! You are zone 3 there Matt? I never imagined any type of Peach would be hearty enough for zone 2 or 3, very awesome to find out differently :D

I'm in zone 4

Maybe warmer in the city

Yeah...City of Edmonton is also zone 4, with more global warming we'll grow peaches for sure! lol

hopefully somebody discovers some super hardy peach from northern Asia and brings it here. I bet it took a while for people to discover apricots can grow here.

You guys are suck lucky Ducks being zone 4, that sure opens up a lot more selection on what you can grow. Green with envy here in zone 2 lol

Southern Alberta is zone 4. In Calgary it's a bit warmer. It depends on who's zone rating map you look at also. Calgary is also the sunniest city in Canada . Our winters are very up and down and pose a major challenge for trees like these

Was there any apricots grown anywhere this year in colder climates. Mine were the size of real big grapes and had hundreds but that all changed quickly. Quite disheartening actually . But surely there was somebody up here who's tree opened later than mine that got lots of fruit or any

Was there any at the fruit show?

I wish I had the chance to make it to the fruit festival, I am curious as well.

Didn't your friend produce a bunch of apricots this year?

Yes, my friends parents have a Manchurian Apricot tree. The Dad got perturbed with the tree and pruned it rustically with a chainsaw, this is what must have made it bear a humongous amount of Apricots. I think she said her parents tree is around 20 years old and this was the first time it ever fruited. I really wanted a Manchurian Apricot until I found out at most it will only fruit every 5 years, that fact changed my mind in a hurry! lol I really super want a Capilano Apricot tree, I planted a casino Apricot tree in the fall... I am hoping when I get a Capilano Apricot tree that they will pollinate each other. I asked my friend if they saved the Manchurian Apricot seeds, she said her aunt saved around 10. Her aunt wants a tree like her dads and s going to try growing them. I told her if she gets them growing I will help her aunt when it comes time to use them as root stock, I can then graft her dads scion to her aunts rootstocks.

every five years might be an average. We get warm phases that last a few years than cold phases. They said western Canada is supposed to be warm for next five years and it's been two really nice ones since !

Ive had mine in the ground 5 years and only flowers a few times and this year was first sign of fruit. You have no idea how much effort I've put into apricots. I gave up on them and followed Konrad advice on plums and now have a dozen or more varieties and started to get fruit already. Even plums are not every year some type you'll be lucky to see fruit every five years as well. We need later blooming hardy variety up here and unfortunately apricots blossom first . Mine were shooting out flowers when the tree was still frozen solid in the ground. My trees roots must have not gone deep as I always plant the graft 4-6" above ground if possible. this is probably where a good mulching and heavy watering this time of year will come into play.

But where I live we get some incredible warm years Like zone 5 winters and others we get the cold zone 3 winter . Usually all mixed up

The trees I seen here 3 years ago loaded with fruit were quite the sight . I had been toying around wig nursery trees and stumbled across these amazing huge trees covered in apricots but not at all taken care of . I have all 5 of those trees growing in my yard now. One flowers huge bunches of pink flowers and produces Tons of decent quality small apricots for fresh eating. The other trees were normal with less but bigger fruit . Next two summers after I didn't see fruit. Maybe some this year but I never went back to check.

I collected a ton of seeds from there and have dozens in my gardens a few years old now I'm going to use for my rootstocks now . Apricot grows quite fast so topping then with plums will probably work fine for me,instead of ordering rootstocks . I enjoy this stuff thoroughly and was amazed to see somebody else finally on here as interested in apricots as me. I've been out doing my pre winter watering lately .im going to do some pruning this week to try and guarante some new ones I got I will at worst case have scions of come spring if any of the variety died off

That is such fantastic information Matt! That taught me a lot :D I want to plant some Apricot seeds but have to be careful it is a super hearty kind that will do very well in zone 2. I dont know where to find these seeds? lol I ordered 10 seeds, that was as much as I wanted to ever pay for seeds grrr lol Down the road I want to graft Apricot and Plum to these future root stocks, I really want more than 10! Haha I want to graft trees for my Nephew that I can steal scion wood from to graft to my existing new trees in a few years. I would love to help him out more than help myself, He is a great Nephew to me and offered me run of his property to do all the grafting madness I can imagine lol

I will experiment out on his property, what I have luck with best I will graft to my trees :D

I grafted scions to 2nd year apricot seedlings and the grafts took very well. I think most manchurian strain will survive zone 2 may not fruit or flower but it may grow fine so as a rootstock might be ok. Seeds will all differ also. Some will survive but lots won't. It's not a matter of being careful I think more just finding seedlings that won't die. My experience don't even bother potting them. Put the seeds in the ground now and into spring a bit you will have apricot trees.

I really like the sounds of that Matt, thank you so much :D Now only to find more Apricot zone 2 friendly seeds! hehe

This is my apricot grafting method ...

after two weeks later it will grow..

its very easy

I have many apricot trees and many kinds.

That is so cool Ahmet, awesome job! It looks like your method does very well!

Michelle, if you ever have scion wood, in the futur, from Capilano, Sunrise or Casino, or even another one that you think is worth growing, I would love to get some. I am in Qc so I don't know about shipping, but I would happily organize it and pay for it. I wouldn't have much things to share since I am in zone 4/5... But I can pay you if you want! Or can trade hardy cherries, haskaps, kiwis, gooseberries and some. I am trying to grow Scout and Harylane, here, but I doupt that they are gonna make it. Scout is not disease resistant and Harylane is not as hardy as advertised. Anyway. Your project is so inspiring and insteresting! Congrats and the best of luck!!

I listed Capilano offsprings here....

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-buy-sell-other/edmonton/apricot-seedlings/1129744176?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

Happy New Year to all of you!

No apricot is fully disease resistant ,especially when zone pushing . Scout will do fine in zone 4 . Konrad has sunrise and I trust his judgment on the quality after his review I wouldn't waste my time with them. Westcot and capilano are best for cold climates.

Cynthia, so far I only have 1 Apricot tree... it is a Casino Apricot tree. I planted it in September, fingers crossed the fall planting and mild winter it will make winter hehe

Yes Matt...my Sunrise I cut mostly down to make room for new cultivars to put on,..just some left to aid pollinate others. Capilano is much better.

Check with the Hardy Nursery in Quebec in a year or two, I sent them a bunch of Capilano scions to introduce into their nursery.

Has anybody found out what Casino actually is?? One should be able to find out because we as buyer/growers have the right to know what it is. Perhaps Capilano? Some odd ball nurseries have the tendency to change the old cultivars name to trick customers for something new. One to think of is.. Evans Cherries, some US sellers made it into Bali. Well..some is sold by two names now, Evans Bali, but not after I gave them heck!

OK..from the web ...

Casino Apricot -Prunus mandshurica x ‘DurGarfield’Exclusive to Advance Nursery, Casino is very hardy with high quality fruit that is oval to slightly oblong and freestone. The yellow fruit ripens in August with a red tinge on the blush. It is semi-self-pollinating but will set a heavier crop if it is cross-pollinated with another apricot or Nanking Cherry.

That doesn't mean much,..I can't find anything on DurGarfield, have contacted Advance,..will see if they give me any information.

Casino is made by a company in grand forks bc. It's not nearly as hardy as capilano here for me. I've had issues with my casino perhaps I got a crappy tree or roots.

The two trees in Calgary the Riley ones make nice fruit especially the one that flowers pink. If you guys don't want to drive down yourselfs I will send you some as much as you want in mail it's not far for me to drive but hours for you guys. Not very hard for me to do for fellow hobbiest. It grows just as hardy as capilano. I've never tasted capilano but the fruit looks a big better off your Edmonton tree in pics nicer orange apricot. Hopefully I get capilano fruits.

Im not entirely sure what capilano trees I have grafted I'd love if somebody up in Edmonton would cut some for me and send me a bit of it this spring.

I can do this for you...you got my email address.

Does anybody know what happened to Don who posted many nice Capilano fruit pictures in my thread, http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1880541/apricots-in-flower, he pulled all of them and nothing to show anymore! He moved on to this new site, [Growing Fruit] and perhaps the take over to houzz made him do this.

I think there will be Capilano fruits again this year,.. if the winter and spring stays mild, hopefully I can make new fruit pictures and post.

I havent seen him lately either, I was getting kind of worried. I am curious what the reason is to pull pics and comments off of here that were so helpful? Perhaps he deleted his account, might that make all his posts disappear?

I am interested in finding cold hardy Pear, apple and apricot scion in the spring so when you do your pruning please give me a shout.I will cover shipping cost, I dont want anyone out of pocket :D

I just put it in an envelope and simple stamp. I'll send you some apricot

Matt that would mean so much to me! I am sorry I did not see this until now. I am very stoked! I saw how well your Apricots are doing, I am floored!What do you do with all your fruit? I am a jam and syrup making queen, when I get fruit I will be flying high! Haha I really cant wait for next spring :D

I ate all of the fresh and froze a bunch sliced up. I'll attempt to make a pie like konrads once I get the recipe :)

I cant wait to try that recipe as well for pie, it looks delicious. I have my Omas plum cake recipe, it is more like a thinner crumb cake you would have with coffee. It is so moist and yummy! If I could get my hands on some plums I would love to make that cake again. Matt, if you are on facebook you can add me... I am Michelle Potratz :)