Mutsu (Crispin) Apple
Pollination & Compatibility Guide
Mutsu (Crispin) apple pollination guide: triploid, bloom group 3, Golden Delicious parent excluded. Two-partner layout, large fruit and storage notes.
Mutsu (Crispin) is a Triploid (Needs 2 Partners)
Mutsu (Crispin) 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 2–4, which will also pollinate each other.
- Chromosome Ploidy
- triploid
- Required Companions
- 2 Diploid Partners (3-Way)
- Bloom Group
- Group 3 (Mid-Spring)
- Harvest Timing
- Late Season (Anchor @ 0d)
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 2 to 4 provides matching blossom overlap.
Compatible Pollination Partners (88)
| Cultivar | Bloom Group | Overlap Type | Harvest | Primary Uses | Interactive Test |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Hudson's Golden Gem | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late Concurrent (±0d) | Fresh Eating | Test Cross |
Keepsake | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late Concurrent (±0d) | Storage, All-Purpose | Test Cross |
Northwest Greening | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late Concurrent (±0d) | Cooking | Test Cross |
Peck's Pleasant | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Mid Concurrent (±0d) | All-Purpose | Test Cross |
| Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late Concurrent (±0d) | All-Purpose, Storage | Test Cross | |
Regent | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late Concurrent (±0d) | All-Purpose | Test Cross |
Suncrisp | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late Concurrent (±0d) | All-Purpose | Test Cross |
| Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late Concurrent (±0d) | Fresh Eating, Cider | Test Cross | |
Black Oxford | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late ±5d delta | All-Purpose, Storage | Test Cross |
| Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late ±5d delta | All-Purpose | Test Cross | |
| Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late ±5d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross | |
Connell Red | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late ±10d delta | All-Purpose | Test Cross |
| Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late ±10d delta | Fresh Eating | Test Cross | |
Crimson Gold | Group 3 | Full Overlap | Late ±10d delta | All-Purpose | Test Cross |
| Group 3 | Full Overlap | Mid ±10d delta | Cider, Cooking | Test Cross |
Incompatible Varieties & Exclusions (18)
These varieties overlap in flowering time with Mutsu (Crispin) but cannot fertilise it due to sterile pollen (triploids) or shared genetic incompatibility alleles.
Arkansas Black produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Ashmead's Kernel produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
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.
A direct parent (Golden Delicious × Indo) — roughly half the pollen is non-functional, so it is not a reliable partner.
Gravenstein produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Jonagold 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.
Orleans Reinette 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.
Stayman Winesap produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Tompkins King produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Zabergau Reinette produces no viable pollen, so it cannot serve as a pollinizer.
Grower Commentary: Mutsu Triploid Layout and Large Fruit
Mutsu, sold in Britain as Crispin, is a triploid from the Aomori station in Japan, a cross of Golden Delicious and Indo. Its pollen is sterile, so plant it with two diploid cultivars in bloom group 3 that also pollinate each other. Golden Delicious is a parent, so do not use it as a partner; the compatibility list on this page sets it aside.
Mutsu ripens at about the same time as Golden Delicious in maritime north-west European conditions. The record lists culinary, dessert and juice uses. Fruit is very large, crisp and juicy, with a sweet, mild flavour that suits baking and fresh sale, and it keeps well in cold storage.
Triploid trees are vigorous and slow to start cropping, so use a semi-dwarfing rootstock and give them room. Large fruit needs careful thinning to avoid limb breakage, and heavy apples bruise easily in bins, so use shallow bins and a short run to the packhouse.
Key Orchard Considerations for Mutsu (Crispin)
Plant two compatible group 3 diploids other than Golden Delicious; Mutsu donates no pollen.
Use a semi-dwarfing stock, wide spacing and patience before full cropping.
Thin for size, support limbs and use shallow bins to limit bruising.
Take Mutsu (Crispin) 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 Mutsu (Crispin) 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.