Gonna Restore Apple Orchard

[rgr33]

Just a couple of thoughts on reviving an old orchard, HillStreet. Do not go crazy for the first year with pruning. Try to take about 1/3 of the old wood out, taking more than that shocks the tree, and it will throw out a huge amount of new growth, which will need to be removed the following spring.
The general rule for pruning older established trees is to try to remove the branches that grow inward, towards the center of the tree, and those that grow pointing upwards. You will notice uncared for apple trees have a lot of beaches or sucker growing straight up towards the sky, you want them to grow downwards or parallel to the ground.
Unless the trees are in very bad condition, they shouldn't need any fertilizer, as it causes excess growth of new foliage, and you want fruit, not leaves. If you do decide to fertilize, use a fertilizer with little to no nitrogen in it.
Copper sulphate or a combination fruit tree spray, is very safe to use on Apple peach and plum trees, start spaying in Feb. and keep going throughout the growing season.
Turning an neglected orchard around is a little like turning a battleship around, it takes time, effort, and diligence. It's an ongoing process. Every year, you prune and spray, and at the same time, the tree tries to revert to the condition you started with in the first place.r

 

[Larry Caldwell]

I'm totally impressed that your trees are surviving. I hear nothing but horror stories on keeping apple trees alive. So you must have some hardy varieties in there. Well worth the effort to keep them healthy and productive. Best of luck to you -- enjoy.

Standard trees live much longer, but take longer to start bearing fruit and you have to keep after them or they over-grow and become impractical to pick. Grafted trees are much more popular, but short lived.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Mt FIL has about 30 fruit trees, about half various varieties of apple, the rest pear, peach, plum, cherry. About halfway through last season, many of them, particularly the apples, got what we are pretty certain was a fungus - lost most of their leaves, dark spots on fruit. The previous season, the yield was so great that they broke a few branches. He doesn't "believe" in pruning. But we know that with fungus, there's only one possible salvation, to ruthlessly prune off all the diseased wood and burn it.

Wife went to try to do that today and he freaked out and stopped her after only a few trees, only letting her "shape" the rest a little. Guess he forgot about the fungus or thinks it will just somehow be cured. I told her to quit, as she was just wasting her time and ALL of the trees were likely doomed. Makes me furious, but there is just no explaining things to some people that have some other notion stubbornly implanted.

Sorry for the rant and the thread diversion. I really needed to vent.

Dormant sprays may solve the problem. Lime-sulfur and light oil will solve a myriad of problems with fruit trees. You need to get on the lime-sulfur right away, as the necessary concentrations will burn the buds after they start to swell.

 

[JRobyn]

Thanks Larry. We'll try that pronto.

 

[JRobyn]

Having trouble finding any lime-sulfur locally or even on-line! Garden Web reports that lime-sulfur was banned by the EPA in 2010. Everyone now wants to sell us "Captan" or "Rescue", but they are all out of Rescue. The local coop had wettable sulfur and hydrated lime. Maybe that would work, but how to mix and spray? Any experience with Captan or Rescue?

 

[Larry Caldwell]

There are several dormant sprays on the market, just pick one. Amazon also sells a lime-sulfur pet dip that is about 5x as concentrated as the old agricultural product, so if you decide to go off-label be sure to dilute it. Dormant oils are still on the market, and require application at least a week apart from sulfur products.

Just google dormant spray and you will get pages of information and sources.

If you want to buy real lime-sulfur dormant spray, you will have to get a pesticide applicator's license, which is not that hard. Most farmers are licensed applicators.

 

[TomSeller]

We have plenty of young trees also that have "popped up" on their own.The work now is getting the brush cleared from around them.

Those would be Seedlings which likely will not yield much of an apple. You could graft onto the seedlings as they will be a full,sized tree (30' tall or so).

I have grafted dozens and dozens of apples from my orchard dating back prior to 1880. I have been losing many of the old girls every year due to termites, age and windstorms. Don't wait if you want to keep the old varieties. I also am introducing modern varieties onto the property. If you are going to replant in an existing orchard, google "apple replant disease". I found it best to move the orchard rather than deal with stunted apple trees.

 

[dmccarty]

We have plenty of young trees also that have "popped up" on their own.The work now is getting the brush cleared from around them.

I thought known apple varieties are all grafted to root stock and the graft line is above ground. If the trees have popped up from the root stock or seeds, what apple variety would appear?

Later,
Dan

 

[MossRoad]

I thought known apple varieties are all grafted to root stock and the graft line is above ground. If the trees have popped up from the root stock or seeds, what apple variety would appear?

Later,
Dan

Hard to say, but probably not exactly like the apple the seed came out of.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Those would be Seedlings which likely will not yield much of an apple. You could graft onto the seedlings as they will be a full,sized tree (30' tall or so).

I have grafted dozens and dozens of apples from my orchard dating back prior to 1880. I have been losing many of the old girls every year due to termites, age and windstorms. Don't wait if you want to keep the old varieties. I also am introducing modern varieties onto the property. If you are going to replant in an existing orchard, google "apple replant disease". I found it best to move the orchard rather than deal with stunted apple trees.

Once in a while you will hit a jackpot with a seedling. We had one at my parents' place that I pruned for 40 years. It was a great apple, large, juicy, heavy bearing with great flavor. All of the popular apple varieties started from a random seedling.