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You're right, what's for sale are are rootstock trees. But I believe you can get access to seed stock as well.

Apples trees grown from seed actually do not match their parent - they are a genetic mix (just like us). What's more, they will most likely bear fruit that isn't pleasant to eat.

All the apple varieties you eat have been cultivated from a single original specimen, via cuttings or (more likely) grafting onto a convenient root stock.

So does that mean if you only have the seeds available you've effectively lost that variety? i.e. it's now extinct?

I feel this warrants more research for me.

Yes, essentially, if it hasn't otherwise been propagated. Also, the process for creating a new edible variety is fairly time and resource intensive, since it involves planting a lot of seeds and waiting a couple years to see if you get something worthwhile.

The story is also similar for rootstock. Apples are naturally a fairly large tree, which isn't convenient for harvesting. The rootstocks that apples are typically grafted onto are genetic variants that don't grow as large.

Thanks for the education :)

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