Need Apple tree Trimming Advice.

[scesnick]

Wifey and I built our home on my grand fathers farm/ property 10 yrs ago. It has quite a few apple trees on it. propbably 30 or so. never really counted them. They are spread over 76 acres so, some get good sum, some are on a hill, etc.. there are many different varieties also.

These trees haven't been trimmed in no less than 30 yrs. I remember as a kid these trees grew some very nice apples when my grandad took care of them. But that wa sa while ago.

Most of the apples have these brown spot like blemishes on them. they are not rotten, just small and blemished.

Any advice on how to properly trim these trees, what time of yr. to trim them. What to spray to get rid of these darn brown spots... etc....

 

[coveredbridge]

Best time to prune (trim) your apple trees is while they are dormant, say late November to late February/early March. Since they haven't been pruned for many years, you'll probably need to take quite a bit off. It's best not to do that all in one year, since it puts a lot of stress on the tree. Plan on taking a few years to get the trees shaped the way you want them.

I have 4 apple trees and 1 pear tree that I care for, and pruning them probably takes 7 or 8 hours per tree, but I am pretty meticulous about it. I prune a little then step back and see how the tree is shaping up, and prune a little more. I wouldn't want to attempt to care for 30 trees. If you have the time, great. If not, maybe pick a handful to start with, get them the way you want them, then work on more if you want.

I was able to get some publications from our county ag extension office on pruning techniques that showed me how to prune effectively for fruit production. If you have a similar agency in MD, that might be a good place to start for guidance on how to prune fruit trees. I've been pruning these trees for 15- 20 years, and I still don't think I'm very good at it, but I enjoy the challenge.

As for spray, I use the bonide fruit tree spray that is usually available at home depot or TSC. I've seen others comment here that they don't think it does any good, but it seems to work ok for me.

 

[scesnick]

Thanks CoveredBridge,

I don't plan on trying to prune all of them at once. Some I just want a bit more fruit for the deer and shape of the tree doesn't matter to me at all. Most of these trees are in my back field and you can't see them from the house.

I don't want these trees dying however, they have been apart of this poperty since I can remember.

I do have a few trees that are very good apples and the wife really likes them. I also have 4 pear trees but the fruit is hard as a rock and very bitter. i remember eating these pears as a kid when my grandfather took care of the trees and they were awesome. Hopefully I can bringt these pear trees back to the way they were before.

 

[dex3361]

I trim in February and March.

I take no more than 1/4 of the branches in one year.

There is an old apple tree saying that goes like this,
"Trim the tree so you can throw a cat through it and it cant grab a limb"

That said I cut all rubbing branches first.

Then move on to the limbs that are between 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock except for the leader.

 

[coveredbridge]

I had the same experience with my pears until I found out that you have to pick the pears before they drop from the tree and allow them to ripen in the basket. They will turn from green to yellow and the fruit will soften up as they ripen.