Taxon ID: 1
Usage Facet: class=edible; edible_score=1.0; ornamental_score=0.0; inferred_from_taxon=no
Relationships: 0 | Linked Entities (visible): 0 | Evidence claims: 17 | History events: 0 | Catalog issue offerings: 0
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Evidence Badge: emerging | claims=17 | sources=3 | contradictions=0
Claim Types: column_scope_context:3, recommendation_context:3, growth_habit:1, hardiness_observation:1, rootstock_compatibility:1, table_axis_context:1, taxon_context:1 | Open evidence summary JSON | Open citation drawer JSON
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Virginia Crab is a crabapple noted in older South Dakota fruit literature as both an orchard fruit and one of the best hardy stocks for top working less hardy apples. Sources describe it as especially vigorous, early bearing, and exceptionally winter hardy, with wide angled branches that resist splitting. It was also identified cytologically as a triploid with 51 chromosomes, and one bulletin cites it as a large hybrid crab that is a poor seeder. [S1] [S2] [S3] [S4] [S5]
These sources present Virginia Crab in practical terms. It was already in use in South Dakota orchard experiments by spring 1896, when trees were planted on station grounds in hardy stock trials. Later bulletins describe it as one of the most favored stocks for top grafting, along with Hibernal, because it could support better varieties on a tougher framework. [S4] [S5]
The packet does not preserve a full fruit description for Virginia Crab, but it shows that growers saw it as more than a stock plant. One source lists it among the most promising crabs, and another notes fine specimens in an older orchard. Its vigor and early bearing help explain why it remained important in prairie orcharding. [S5]
Its strongest documented traits are tree traits. South Dakota extension guidance says Virginia Crab gave some of the best results for top working because of exceptional winter hardiness and wide angled branches that do not split. That mattered in a region where sunscald, weak crotches, and winter injury could ruin otherwise useful apple trees. [S2] [S3] [S4]
Its hardiness is shown by repeated prairie use, not by a modern zone number. One extension table recommended Virginia Crab for top grafting across all three South Dakota fruit zones, including the northern two thirds of the state. It also appears repeatedly in northern Great Plains and South Dakota station literature as a dependable hardy stock. [S3] [S4] [S5]
More broadly, Virginia Crab was part of the hardy Malus material that supported prairie apple culture. These sources do not document its direct parentage, breeder, or place of origin, so those points remain open. They do show why it mattered: Virginia Crab helped make top worked apples more feasible under severe northern conditions and was valued for the structure and winter survival traits that hardy fruit growing depended on. [S1] [S2] [S3] [S4] [S5]
Summary source basis
This summary currently draws chiefly from A Study of Northwestern Apples, with 4 additional supporting sources linked below.
Featured source descriptions
“Recommended due to exceptional winter hardiness.”
— [5]
“due to exceptional winter hardiness”
— [1]
“Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab”
— [1]
“Virginia crab was among the varieties most favored as stocks at the time of writing.”
— [2]
Direct parent cultivars
Parentage claim text
Derived or downstream cultivar links
Source-story quotations
Taxonomy context: No family-tree context surfaced yet.
Related cultivars mentioned in source context
Zone assertions are structured rows. Hardiness claim text appears in evidence claims and page-linked citations.
| Zone Min | Zone Max | Zone Text | Assertion Type | Outcome | Location | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| narrative_observation | mentioned | South Dakota | 0.76 | |||
| ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State | recommendation_table | recommended | SUMMER APPLES | 0.84 | ||
| ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie | recommendation_table | recommended | SUMMER APPLES | 0.84 | ||
| ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills | recommendation_table | recommended | SUMMER APPLES | 0.84 |
No linked media assets.
| Document | Title/URL | Rights | Claims | Relationships | History Events | Pages | Snippets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | South Dakota Fruit Garden (visual sample pages 9-11) | public_domain | 13 | 0 | 0 | p1 p3 | wide-angle branches which do not split.; due to exceptional winter hardiness; Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab; {"claims": [{"claim |
| 14 | A Study of Northwestern Apples | unknown | 3 | 0 | 0 | p134 | Included in station-grown top-working trees under test in the 1896 planting line.; Survived severe winter stress in this trial line because scion roots proved hardy.; One of the varieties most favored as top-working stoc |
| 106 | Daniels planting guide, 1950 | unknown | 1 | 0 | 0 | p21 | Included among the four finest crabs for eating, jelly, pickling, and as hardy top-working stocks. |
| Document | Page | Claim Type | Claim | Quote | Match |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | p134 | entry_location | Included in station-grown top-working trees under test in the 1896 planting line. | At the present writing, the varieties most favored as stocks are Virginia crab and Hibernal apple. ... The Virginia crab trees saved themselves because the scion roots proved hardy. | page_block:0.90 |
| 14 | p134 | hardiness_observation | Survived severe winter stress in this trial line because scion roots proved hardy. | At the present writing, the varieties most favored as stocks are Virginia crab and Hibernal apple. ... The Virginia crab trees saved themselves because the scion roots proved hardy. | page_block:0.90 |
| 14 | p134 | rootstock_compatibility | One of the varieties most favored as top-working stock at this stage. | At the present writing, the varieties most favored as stocks are Virginia crab and Hibernal apple. ... The Virginia crab trees saved themselves because the scion roots proved hardy. | page_block:0.90 |
| 106 | p21 | recommendation_context | Included among the four finest crabs for eating, jelly, pickling, and as hardy top-working stocks. | Virginia Crab | page_block:0.90 |
| 2 | p3 | growth_habit | wide-angle branches which do not split. | Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab, due to exceptional winter hardiness and wide-angle branches which do not split. | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p3 | entry_hardiness_observation | due to exceptional winter hardiness | Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab, due to exceptional winter hardiness and wide-angle branches which do not split. | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p3 | recommendation_context | Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab | Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab, due to exceptional winter hardiness and wide-angle branches which do not split. | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p3 | structured_entry_json | {"claims": [{"claim_text": "Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab", "claim_type": "recommendatio | Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab, due to exceptional winter hardiness and wide-angle branches which do not split. | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | column_scope_context | ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | taxon_context | SUMMER APPLES | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | table_axis_context | Top Grafting | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | recommendation_context | For Quick Returns | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | structured_entry_json | {"column_label": "ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State", "cultivar_name": "Virginia Crab", "notes": [], "page_number": 1, "parser_mode": "visual_table_page", "row_con | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | column_scope_context | ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | taxon_context | SUMMER APPLES | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | table_axis_context | Top Grafting | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | recommendation_context | For Quick Returns | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | structured_entry_json | {"column_label": "ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie", "cultivar_name": "Virginia Crab", "notes": [], "page_number": 1, "parser_mode | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | column_scope_context | ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | taxon_context | SUMMER APPLES | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | table_axis_context | Top Grafting | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | recommendation_context | For Quick Returns | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| 2 | p1 | structured_entry_json | {"column_label": "ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills", "cultivar_name": "Virginia Crab", "notes": [], "page_number": 1, "parser_mode": "vi | SUMMER APPLES | For Quick Returns | Top Grafting | ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills | Virginia Crab | visual_page_probe:0.90 |
| Year | Nursery | Catalog Issue | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| No catalog issue offerings linked. | |||
| Relation | Type | ID | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| No linked entities at this filter level. | |||
| Type | Claim | Confidence |
|---|---|---|
| entry_location | Included in station-grown top-working trees under test in the 1896 planting line. | 0.78 |
| hardiness_observation | Survived severe winter stress in this trial line because scion roots proved hardy. | 0.90 |
| rootstock_compatibility | One of the varieties most favored as top-working stock at this stage. | 0.96 |
| recommendation_context | Included among the four finest crabs for eating, jelly, pickling, and as hardy top-working stocks. | 0.67 |
| growth_habit | wide-angle branches which do not split. | 0.93 |
| entry_hardiness_observation | due to exceptional winter hardiness | 0.93 |
| recommendation_context | Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab | 0.93 |
| structured_entry_json | {"claims": [{"claim_text": "Two varieties has given the best satisfaction when used for stock in top working-the Hibernal apple and the Virginia crab", "claim_type": "recommendation_context"}, {"claim_text": "due to exce | 0.94 |
| column_scope_context | ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State | 0.92 |
| structured_entry_json | {"column_label": "ZONE III All Rest and Northern two-thirds of State", "cultivar_name": "Virginia Crab", "notes": [], "page_number": 1, "parser_mode": "visual_table_page", "row_context": "For Quick Returns", "row_label": | 0.94 |
| column_scope_context | ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie | 0.92 |
| structured_entry_json | {"column_label": "ZONE II Counties in Minne-sota that have North Slopes & Valleys of General Prairie", "cultivar_name": "Virginia Crab", "notes": [], "page_number": 1, "parser_mode": "visual_table_page", "row_context": " | 0.94 |
| column_scope_context | ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills | 0.92 |
| taxon_context | SUMMER APPLES | 0.92 |
| table_axis_context | Top Grafting | 0.92 |
| recommendation_context | For Quick Returns | 0.92 |
| structured_entry_json | {"column_label": "ZONE I Southern Border, Lincoln Co., West & lower Valleys around Black Hills", "cultivar_name": "Virginia Crab", "notes": [], "page_number": 1, "parser_mode": "visual_table_page", "row_context": "For Qu | 0.94 |
| ID | Type | Year | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| No history events. | |||