Cultivar 494: Adam

Adam is a prairie crabapple described as a seedling of Siberian crab, or Malus baccata, selected by W. J. Boughen of Valley River, Manitoba. [S1] [S2] Sources place it in 1935 or 1936. [S1] [S2] Mid century prairie orchard literature describes it as a hardy, productive small fruited crabapple kept in cultivation for utility and endurance. [S1] [S3]

The cultivar is consistently linked to Boughen's Manitoba nursery work. Later prairie references preserve both its seedling origin and its place in the regional crabapple assortment. [S1] [S2] A 1946 prairie orchard bulletin lists Adam among the crabapples important enough to describe for prairie growers, showing it had entered the region's fruit literature by that time. [S3]

Sources describe the fruit somewhat differently, but the overall picture is clear. Adam bears small to small medium, roundish fruit, about 3 cm across in one source, with red skin or pale yellow skin washed and striped red, and white flesh. [S1] [S2] [S3] One account calls the flesh crisp and juicy. Another calls it slightly dry and astringent. Both agree it is acid and somewhat astringent, with only fair to good dessert quality. [S1] [S3] Its main value was practical use, not luxury fruit. One prairie source calls it excellent for canning, while another table places it in processing use. [S1] [S2]

Season is also reported in two ways. One source says it ripens very early, while another places the season in September and a third table marks it late. [S1] [S2] That may reflect different districts, picking stages, or a real discrepancy in the literature. What is consistent is that Adam was treated as a kitchen crabapple rather than a long keeping dessert apple. [S1] [S2]

On the tree, Adam is described as upright, spreading, and a moderate grower, with good productivity. [S3] Another prairie reference adds that it can bear biennially. [S1] Hardiness is one of its strongest themes. A 1946 bulletin calls it extra hardy, and a later prairie account reports a tree at Jarvie still producing in 1990 after 48 years without fire blight or winterkill. [S1] [S3] That record makes Adam notable as a survivor from the older prairie crabapple tradition, valued less for refinement than for staying alive, bearing reliably, and filling jars when harsher apples failed. [S1] [S3]

Summary source basis

• S1: Edible Apples in Prairie Canada
• S2: An index of fruit cultivars tested or developed on the Canadian prairies.
• S3: TreeFruitsGrownInPrairieOrchards WRLeslie 1946 HQ

This summary currently draws chiefly from Edible Apples in Prairie Canada, with 2 additional supporting sources linked below.

Featured source descriptions

“Referenced to Peterson and Heatley (1989), page 4.”
— ^[1]

“Boughen Nurseries, Valley River, Manitoba.”
— ^[2]

“At Jarvie it had gone 48 years without fire blight or winterkill and was still producing in 1990.”
— ^[1]

“Flesh slightly dry and astringent.”
— ^[1]

Direct parent cultivars

• No direct linked parent cultivars promoted yet.

Parentage claim text

• No direct breeding_cross claim text yet.

Derived or downstream cultivar links

• No derived or downstream lineage links yet.

Source-story quotations

• Adam (Red Siberian sdlg) Boughen (1936) CREdible Apples in Prairie Canada, p13
• Adam (Red Siberian sdlg) Boughen (1936) CREdible Apples in Prairie Canada, p13
• Adam (Red Siberian sdlg) Boughen (1936) CREdible Apples in Prairie Canada, p13
• Adam (Red Siberian sdlg) Boughen (1936) CREdible Apples in Prairie Canada, p13

Taxonomy context: No family-tree context surfaced yet.

Related cultivars mentioned in source context