The Lost Apple Project

03/09/2026

Announcing Grafting and Pruning Classes in April

Spangle Grafting Classes in April

If fruit trees are interesting to you, consider coming to a 2 ½ hour fruit tree grafting class this April at Mike Chase’s place just outside of Spangle. He will provide hands-on experiences in preparing, placing, securing, and wrapping the two major kinds of bench grafts, the whip-and-tongue graft and the cleft graft. Participants will practice aligning the cambium layers of the scion and the
understock and also covering exposed grafting wounds, both of which are crucial to grafting success. Additionally, the class provides a conceptual understanding of the callusing process and the critical elements of after-care of grafted material. Through the demonstration portion of the class, participants will learn 4 other
techniques: bark graft, cleft graft, side graft, and chip budding. Also they will be able to see mature tree outcomes that demonstrate different methods that have been used to topwork and framework existing fruit trees.

Additional details about the class and resources for preparing for the class are at Mike’s website:
http://thefruithouse.weebly.com
Date & Times (all sessions are identical):
Saturday April 11th 9:00 to 11:30 am
Sunday April 12th 4:00-6:30 pm
Saturday April 18th 9:00 to 11:30 am
Sunday April 19th 4:00-6:30 pm

Location: The Chase farm is located just southeast of Spangle at 3717 E. Keevy Road, Spangle, WA 99031
Cost: $25 (payable to the Lost Apple Project, Whitman County Historical Society). There is a $5 dollar discount on both classes for those taking both the grafting class and the pruning class (see post of information on the pruning class)
Sign Up Procedure: Contact Mike Chase ([email protected] ) to secure your spot in the class at the date/time of your choice.

Spangle Pruning Class In April

Mike Chase will be teaching a fruit tree pruning class this April in an orchard composed of trees ranging in age from recently planted (2026) to 15 year old trees including apples, apricots, cherries, peaches, and plums, with examples of pruning for open center, central leader, multi-leader, and bush. There are many
pruning decisions that need to be made depending on the age and type of tree. The diverse orchard at the Chase Place is a good location for comparing and contrasting the distinctive strategies used for pruning apples, pears and European plums vs. peaches; apricots and Japanese plums vs. cherries; and all
fruit trees vs. landscape trees.

Sign up for the pruning class here: http://thefruithouse.weebly.com The website has many good resources that can be studied before the class, if desired. Especially valuable in the time together with Mike in a very diverse home orchard is being able to compare and contrast the distinctive strategies used for pruning apples, pears, and European plums vs. peaches, apricots, and Japanese plums vs. cherries vs. landscape trees.

Dates & Times (all sessions are identical):
Saturday, April 11th 1:00 to 3:30 am
Sunday, April 12th 1:00 to 3:30 pm
Saturday, April 18th 1:00 to 3:30 pm
Sunday, April 19th 1:00 to 3:30 pm
Location: The Chase farm is located just southeast of Spangle at 3717 E. Keevy Road, Spangle, WA 99031
Cost: $20 (payable to the Lost Apple Project, Whitman County Historical Society). There is a $5 dollar discount on both classes for those taking both the grafting class and the pruning class (see post of information on the grafting class)

Sign Up Procedure:
Contact Mike Chase([email protected] ) to secure your spot in the class at the date/time of your choice.

(Offered by the Lost Apple Project)

01/01/2026

Starting today you can order both apple scions and apple trees from The Lost Apple Project. We are using a new method to order scions and trees so please bear with me. Click the link below to access a document that has ordering info and apple descriptions highlighted in yellow. Hover your mouse over the highlighted yellow text and then click to view the document.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1G86pvu2N3x3-_7MSUIHLtS94l4UEixOz/edit

Fill out the Google form found linked to the above page to order scions. You will not be asked for payment (unless the order is over $100) until we fill your order and are ready to mail your scions. We mail scions to you by mid-March.
You can also order newly grafted trees but they are for local pickup in Spokane and Pullman, Washington and Eagle, Idaho. Once again, no payment is needed until your trees are picked up (unless the order is over $150). Specify if you want M111 (Max 22 feet tall) or M7 (Max 14 feet tall) as your rootstock. Both are considered semi-dwarf.
All scions are $6 and newly grafted trees are $35.
While we carry many once lost varieties, we also have great heritage, cider, and modern cultivars.
Would you like a little help before making your choices? Three vastly underrated apples are Polly Bemis, Kittageskee, and Surprise #1.

If you order a tree, it will be grafted in early April and then the graft needs to heal for a couple of months. We will set up several pick-up locations and dates in Spokane, Pullman, and Eagle (Idaho) beginning around July 1st.
Thank you in advance for your support of The Lost Apple Project!
An average tree grafted in March is 12" tall in June and 30" tall by October. If you have any problems you can email me at [email protected].

Lost Apple Project Scion Sale for 2026 Sale of scions and trees ends on February 1st Details on the Scion Sale for 2026 The Lost Apple Project is delighted to be able to offer scions of apples (old and new), pears, plums, and cherries again this year. There are also grafted apple trees a...

12/23/2025

It's too late now for it to arrive before Christmas ... but if you've had your eye on getting a copy of our book, "Lost Apples: The search for rare and heritage apples in the Pacific Northwest," any orders made in December earn a 10 percent donation to The Lost Apple Project. Plus Keokee Books, the publisher, is offering free shipping.

See more about the book – and if it's of interest, do order before December 31 and we'll get a donation. Thank you, and merry Christmas to all!

Link is in the first comment!

Nonfiction, 288 pages Hardbound 7.5″ x 10.5″, color $38.00. Free shipping! Buy Now by David Benscoter and Linda Hackbarth Nonfiction, 288 pages Hardbound 7.5″ x 10.5″, color $38.00. Free shipping!

11/22/2025

Huge Apple plus a Holiday offer!

Here is a Holiday offer from the publishers of Lost Apples, The search for rare and heritage apples in the Pacific Northwest. Buy this book from now until the end of the year and receive free shipping plus 10 percent of all orders made from this site * https://lostapples.wiki/book/ * will be donated to the Lost Apple Project.

Regarding the HUGE apple: This apple came from a homestead 7 miles from Pullman, WA. It is the biggest apple I have ever seen. The apple shown weighed in at one pound, 11 1/2 ounces. Nearly a two pound apple! Hopefully we'll get this apple identified soon.

Thanks for your support!

11/12/2025

Please join me in prayer for Roy Druffel, Pullman farmer and original member of The Lost Apple Project. Roy was struck down by a stroke two weeks ago and is recovering in a Spokane hospital. He faces a lot of tough physical therapy before he can rejoin his family.

10/04/2025

We are now in the stretch run to pick old homestead orchards and try to find rare or lost apple trees. Here are some pictures of helpers joining me on apple picking excursions in September.

PS: Fall is a great time to plant fruit trees and we still have some great BIG trees available. Email me if you'f like to purchase some ($35 each).

08/22/2025

Well, it's that time of year. The early apples are ripe and the September and October apples are right behind them. If you know about old (pre-1920) apple trees and you can get permission from the owner, please email me and I'll send you instructions on how to pick, map, and mail them to us.

Email address: [email protected]

Also, Keokee Publishing has created a website devoted to our hunt for lost aples here in the Pacific Northwest. The name of the website is: www.lostapples.wiki

The site has lots of information on lost and found apples and a form that can be emailed to us. Here's to a great fall and lots of of really old apple trees!

This wiki is provided as a support to the Lost Apple Project and is an adjunct to the new book Lost Apples: The search for rare and heritage apples in the Pacific Northwest. It’s a place for apple…

07/23/2025

Chip Budding Classes for 2025

The Lost Apple Project is again offering chip budding classes in preparation for the 2025 chip budding season in August.

Location: The Chase farm just south east of Spangle, WA The address is 3717 E. Keevy Road, Spangle, WA 99031.
Instructor: Mike Chase

Cost: The instruction is free with a modest fee of $1.50 for each budstick desired (budsticks from over 50 varieties of fruit trees will be available, including plum, pear, apricot, peach, apple, cherry, mulberry, and grape). Bring an ice chest, ice, and 1 gallon plastic bags to transport budstick back to your refrigerators. Budsitcks have a useful life of about a week.
Dates and Times (several duplicate sessions available):
Saturday, July 26 8:00 am to 10:30 am
Saturday, July 26 3:00 pm-5:30 pm
Sunday, July 27 3:00 pm-5:30 pm
Thursday, July 31 8:00 am to 10:30 am
Thursday, July 31 3:00 pm-5:30 pm
Saturday, August 2 8:00 am to 10:30 am
Saturday, August 2 3:00 pm-5:30 pm
Sunday, August 3 3:00 pm-5:30 pm
How to register: To register for a session contact Mike Chase by email ([email protected]) and indicate the date/time you want to attend.
Content: The classes are 2 and 1/2 hours in length and in addition to supervised practice of executing chip buds, includes the experience of selecting and preparing budsticks, and observation of examples of topworked trees chip budded in 2024, 2023, and 2022.