Train Your Apple Trees Now

[Al]

In case anybody is intrested, now is the time to train your apple trees.
If you train them early then they will produce much earlier and have a heavier crop.
They produce best if pruned to have 1 central trunk called the central leader, rather than than multible trunks which will result in more of a shade tree with fruit only on the outer edges. You want branches coming off the central leader in different directions like spokes on a wheel.
The branches tend to grow upright so it is best to train them by spreading them. Upright branches produce more green and less fruit, spreading them causes them to produce more fruit producing "spurs".
Severe upright growing shoots should be removed because they compete with the central leader and tend to split under the weight of fruit and they shade the center of the tree.
Small apples only survive if the leaves above them recieve sunlight so spreading the branches allows more sunlight into the center of the tree, thus producing more fruit.
You can spread small branches early with clothspens. It takes about 2 weeks. Spread larger branches by tieing them down or using limb spreaders this takes about 2 months.
It is very easy and can be done in just a couple of minutes. This is also why I like to use a larger protective cage.
The trees in these pics I planted last yr, and I am now training my second set of branches.

BEFORE

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp1.jpg

AFTER

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp2.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp4.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp5.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp3.jpg

[longtimegone]

Cant wait to put my orchard in...how many trees did you plant? What can I do now to prepare for planting this fall/winter?

[headoftheholler]

In case anybody is intrested, now is the time to train your apple trees.
If you train them early then they will produce much earlier and have a heavier crop.
They produce best if pruned to have 1 central trunk called the central leader, rather than than multible trunks which will result in more of a shade tree with fruit only on the outer edges. You want branches coming off the central leader in different directions like spokes on a wheel.
The branches tend to grow upright so it is best to train them by spreading them. Upright branches produce more green and less fruit, spreading them causes them to produce more fruit producing "spurs".
Severe upright growing shoots should be removed because they compete with the central leader and tend to split under the weight of fruit and they shade the center of the tree.
Small apples only survive if the leaves above them recieve sunlight so spreading the branches allows more sunlight into the center of the tree, thus producing more fruit.
You can spread small branches early with clothspens. It takes about 2 weeks. Spread larger branches by tieing them down or using limb spreaders this takes about 2 months.
It is very easy and can be done in just a couple of minutes. This is also why I like to use a larger protective cage.
The trees in these pics I planted last yr, and I am now training my second set of branches.

BEFORE

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp1.jpg

AFTER

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp2.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp4.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp5.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp3.jpg
al, how are your mature apple trees looking now? Looks like ours will have a record crop, limbs are already hangin' heavy with apples everywhere.:D

[Al]

al, how are your mature apple trees looking now? Looks like ours will have a record crop, limbs are already hangin' heavy with apples everywhere.:D
I dont have any mature trees, but a neighbor has and orchard and it looks like a bumper crop. He has so many that they are going to be small fruit perfect for deer, and he lets me pick as many off the ground as my back can handle to feed them.

Cant wait to put my orchard in...how many trees did you plant? What can I do now to prepare for planting this fall/winter?
I planted 43 total in two different locations.
If I was to do it over again, after I picked the orchard site, I would spray the entire area with a herbicide. Then I would lime and fertilize and till that in. Then I would spray the area again through out the summer to try to make it as weed free as possible because in the Sept I would plant a mix of winter wheat and clover.
Then I would flag each tree location and with a backpack sprayer and spray a 4' circle for each tree site.
I would also frost seed the bare spots in the wheat with clover in Feb.
That would give you a nice clean clover plot next yr and the start of an orchard.
If you really want to do a jam up job, use gravel as mulch around each tree that really helps keep bugs away and keeps mice from nesting at the base of the trees. Or put a small ring of gravel around the trunk them mulch the rest.
But all you really need to do is stake out the area then spray your rings where you intend to plant each tree. Then if you want to go a step further, you could put a couple lbs of lime and mabey bone meal in each circle and take a garden tiller and till each area. Tilling the ground and lime makes it easier to plant and gives the trees a jump start with looser soil and better ph to develop a root system.
Are you doing everything long distance yourself, or do you have family or friends to watch over your place.
Do you have many cedar trees on your place?

[Al]

Here are my results from this tree. Its a Jonathan.
This is 5 months of growth. The end of its 2nd growing season at the farm. It has several fruit spurs on it and should produce next spring.
I bought it as a 2 yr old bareroot from Stark Bros.
The cage is 4 ft tall by 4ft dia.


http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/cp3.jpg

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/a3.jpg

[barney]

Al, been meaning to ask, did your new trees fair well in this years drought?

[Al]

Barn, the deer orchard did real well. It is a sucess. Ill try to post some pics of a couple of the trees.
My cages are 4' across and I mulched the entire circle and kept a 18" ring sprayed on the outside if it. It wet enough early to get the roots established. They are strictly for the deer so I will prune all branches below 36".
They were 4' whips at planting and now have their first set of branches.
I got between 3' to 4' of new growth.
I lost the central leader on 1 crabapple to disease.
Since its for deer I will only mow once a yr every spring.

Mabey you can answer this.
Last weekend I drove over near Bowling green to a blueberry nursery.
I picked up a dozen potted bushes. Im putting them in 2 rows 12' apart with the plants 6' apart. Im going to till the rows 4' wide and irrigate and mulch the rows. Im also going to back fill the holes with peatmoss.
I havnt done a soil test. Any suggestions how much sulfer or alum sulfate to till into the rows? They will be about 40' long rows X 4' wide.
I know if I use sulfer I use much less then the other.
Al

[barney]

Barn, the deer orchard did real well. It is a sucess. Ill try to post some pics of a couple of the trees.
My cages are 4' across and I mulched the entire circle and kept a 18" ring sprayed on the outside if it. It wet enough early to get the roots established. They are strictly for the deer so I will prune all branches below 36".
They were 4' whips at planting and now have their first set of branches.
I got between 3' to 4' of new growth.
I lost the central leader on 1 crabapple to disease.
Since its for deer I will only mow once a yr every spring.

Mabey you can answer this.
Last weekend I drove over near Bowling green to a blueberry nursery.
I picked up a dozen potted bushes. Im putting them in 2 rows 12' apart with the plants 6' apart. Im going to till the rows 4' wide and irrigate and mulch the rows. Im also going to back fill the holes with peatmoss.
I havnt done a soil test. Any suggestions how much sulfer or alum sulfate to till into the rows? They will be about 40' long rows X 4' wide.
I know if I use sulfer I use much less then the other.
Al

I found this in a search.



To lower the pH from 6.5 to 5.4 in a clay loam soil, apply 3.5 to 4.5 lb S/100 sq ft.
To lower the pH from 6.1 to 5.4 in a clay loam soil, apply 2 to 2.75 lb S/100 sq ft.
Heavier soils may require more S for a similar amount of acidification.
It’s best to use the lower rate initially, check soil pH again in 6 months to a year, and apply more S only if necessary. Do not apply more than 7 lb S per 100 sq ft at one time.

I planted blueberries myself, this past spring. The spot I picked out, had a soil test several years ago, and the PH was pretty low....5.8. So, I just added peat moss to the hole at planting, and then mulched the plants with the peat moss. I figured I would wait-n-see if any problems arise, and if need be......... top dress with sulfur then. So far, they have looked healthy. I think I will mulch mine with a heavy coat of pine bark, this winter or early next spring.

I planted "Berkeley" and "Patriot" this round, and I would like to plant 2 different varieties, this comming spring.

[Al]

Thanks Barney, I planted 4 of each, Blue Crop, Jersey and Collins. They were in 3 gal pots.
Here is a link to the nursery that I went to. They have a large berry orchard and some quality plants but it wasnt much of an operation. The woman said her husband "threw out his hip" so she has been taking care of the place herself.
She takes 4" +/- tip cuttings and puts them directly into a bed of peat moss, no rooting horomone. It looked like she had a couple thousand rooting from this yr and mabey 3 or 4 hundred that will be 2 yr olds next yr. She was getting low on this yrs potted plants.
If I get some good growth next yr I can trade you some cuttings.
They root easy.
http://www.angelfire.com/biz/kyblueberry/

Heres the centryfarmsorchard trees I planted late last winter/spring. It was raining when I put them in the ground so I never had to water them at all this yr. Their dropping leaves now.
The first is a virginia beauty it was the only branched one I got.

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/d1.jpg
http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/d2.jpg

I have a stand in this tree line. On the last tree on the right, next to the power lines.
http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/CDLAB/d3.jpg

[ril7572]

Great job Al. Those are really looking good.

[KYHUNTER14]

I went out and pruned the crap out of my trees after reading this thread. Just now noticed it was from several months ago.:(

[barney]

I went out and pruned the crap out of my trees after reading this thread. Just now noticed it was from several months ago.:(
You didn't hurt anything, may have actually promoted a nice fruit set,for this comming spring, by pruning early. I have pruned fruit trees, all times of the year.