Gravenstein Apple
Pollination & Compatibility Guide
Gravenstein apple pollination guide: triploid with sterile pollen, bloom group 2, needs two diploid partners. Layout, early harvest and scab notes.
Gravenstein is a Triploid (Needs 2 Partners)
Gravenstein is a triploid: its pollen is sterile, so it cannot fertilise anything — not even the trees planted to pollinate it. It needs TWO compatible pollinizers from bloom group 1–3, which will also pollinate each other.
- Chromosome Ploidy
- triploid
- Required Companions
- 2 Diploid Partners (3-Way)
- Bloom Group
- Group 2 (Early-Spring)
- Harvest Timing
- Early (-50d from Golden Delicious)
Flowering Period & Overlap Window
Apple flowering periods are classified into numbered bloom groups (1 through 6). A variety reliably cross-pollinates with cultivars in its own group or adjacent groups (±1 group).
Any compatible diploid apple flowering within Group 1 to 3 provides matching blossom overlap.
Compatible Pollination Partners (66)
| Cultivar | Bloom Group | Overlap Type | Harvest | Primary Uses | Interactive Test |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jersey Mac | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±5d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross |
| Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±5d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross | |
Duchess of Oldenburg | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±10d delta | Cooking | Test Cross |
Mollie's Delicious | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±10d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross |
Sansa | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±10d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross |
| Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±15d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross | |
Summerred | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±15d delta | All-Purpose | Test Cross |
| Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±15d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross | |
Lodi | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±20d delta | Cooking | Test Cross |
| Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±20d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross | |
Jonamac | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±25d delta | All-Purpose | Test Cross |
| Group 2 | Full Overlap | Mid ±25d delta | All-Purpose | Test Cross | |
Yellow Transparent | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Early ±25d delta | Cooking | Test Cross |
| Group 2 | Full Overlap | Mid ±35d delta | All-Purpose | Test Cross | |
Macoun | Group 2 | Full Overlap | Mid ±35d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross |
Incompatible Varieties & Exclusions (11)
These varieties overlap in flowering time with Gravenstein but cannot fertilise it due to sterile pollen (triploids) or shared genetic incompatibility alleles.
Baldwin produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Belle de Boskoop produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Blenheim Orange produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Bramley's Seedling produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Fall Pippin produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Karmijn de Sonnaville produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Mutsu (Crispin) produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Ribston Pippin produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Roxbury Russet produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Spigold produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Tompkins King produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Grower Commentary: Gravenstein Triploid Layout and Early Harvest
Gravenstein is a triploid heritage apple of disputed origin, and its pollen is sterile. It cannot fertilise any other tree, so a three-way planting is the rule: Gravenstein plus two diploid cultivars that flower in bloom group 2 and also pollinate each other. A single companion will set fruit on itself while leaving Gravenstein unpollinated, so count partners before you order trees.
Fruit ripens about seven weeks before Golden Delicious in maritime north-west European conditions, which puts it among the earliest culinary and juice apples. The window is short and fruit drops as it ripens, so plan for several picking passes and a buyer or press waiting. It is used for cooking, juicing and fresh eating, and it does not store for long.
The catalogue lists susceptibility to scab, so a clean spring spray or sanitation programme matters, particularly in wet districts. Triploids are vigorous and slower to bear than diploids; use a semi-dwarfing rootstock, give the tree room, and thin to avoid biennial swings.
Key Orchard Considerations for Gravenstein
Always plant two compatible group 2 diploids that cross-pollinate each other; Gravenstein donates no pollen.
Susceptible to scab; protect young leaves in wet springs and clear leaf litter.
Ripens over a brief early window with fruit drop; schedule picks, pressing and sales together.
Take Gravenstein from Planning to Planting
Use Kropigo's free browser tools to model your block density, tree counts, and pollinizer rows, then maintain permanent orchard records row by row.
Pollination Checker
Check Gravenstein against supported cultivars with compatible flowering and pollination data.
Commercial Block Planner
Calculate high-density tree spacing, row geometry, and establishment costs.
Block Record Keeping
Track pruning, chemical thinning, and harvest tallies block by block from the orchard.