From the Living Museum
Dolgo Crabapple
- Origin
- Russia; introduced to North America by Professor N.E. Hansen of South Dakota in the early 20th century
- Era
- Early 20th c. intro (Russian)
- Type / use
- Crab · Jelly · Pollinator
History & Stories
Small, bright red, oval crabapples that are tart, astringent, and extremely high in pectin. Unique as both an outstanding jelly crab and a very cold-hardy, disease-resistant, ornamental pollinator with attractive blossoms and fruit. One of Hansen’s most successful introductions.
Folklore & Name
Introduced from Russia by Professor N.E. Hansen of South Dakota. Named for its place or type; became one of the most useful hardy crabs for jelly and pollination in cold climates.
Digging into the History
Below my own notes, here is what the old fruit books and today’s collections record about this apple, kept apart from the stories people tell.
What we know
Dolgo was selected by Niels E. Hansen of the South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station. Montana State University's heritage orchard guide says it was "selected as the best seedling from several one year old Siberian Crab seedlings collected by Niels E. Hansen on a trip to Russia in 1897," and released in 1917 1. It cites Hansen's own 1940 bulletin, New Hardy Fruits for the Northwest 1,2.
What we think: stories & traditions
"Long." Dolgo is the Russian word for "long," which suits the fruit's elongated shape. Hansen chose the name, but we're relying on the general meaning of the word rather than a quotation from him.
A prairie workhorse. The Montana guide notes that Dolgo was prized as a cold-hardy rootstock, "often planted as a shelterbelt tree in the Great Plains," and valued for its bright red fruit, which jellies easily and makes a pink cider 1. Twenty years passed between Hansen's 1897 trip and the apple's release in 1917 1.
Sources
- Montana State University, Western Agricultural Research Center, Heritage Fruit ID Guide, "Dolgo." agresearch.montana.edu/warc/guides/apples/heritage_orchard_management_guide/heritage-fruit-id-guide/apples_id_key/dolgoappleid.html
- N.E. Hansen, New Hardy Fruits for the Northwest, South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Bulletin 339 (1940). openprairie.sdstate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1338&context=agexperimentsta_bulletins
Curious about Dolgo Crabapple?
Email us at drgoss@honeytreeorchard.com.