Pruning old apple trees?

[wv8n]

There are a couple of old apple trees on our place that are really neglected. There tops look like a birds nest. They do produce apples the are just little guys though and not a lot of them. Im wanting to prune them up and get them back into shape, just wondering if yall had any info to share on how to do it. Maybe some good reading on the subject with some pics(I like pics). Im not sure what type apples they are but they stay pretty hard and are kinda sour. Also is there a good fert. to use on them, and im assuming You put the fert. along the drip line like other trees correct?

Any and all help appreciated.

 

[dex3361]

Prune in your area(my area as well) from the second week in Feb to the second week in March. When pruning apple trees cut everything between 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock. Cut any crossing branches that rub. You can cut up to 1/3 of the wood from the tree without hurting the tree and starting a massive sucker growth. The pruning will encourage larger apple growth if it ever made larger apples.

 

[wv8n]

Thank you dex. So id better hurry if i want it done this year then. So basically cut the branches that reach up rather than out then? There are alot of branches that cross and rub each other some even grow straight back toward the trunk. I might not cut them all this year but im gonna cut some for sure. Should i seal up the cuts or just let them be?

 

[MossRoad]

You want them reaching out, not up.

Think of the shape of an upside down triangle. Or a martini glass. You want open air inside the tree.

I would suggest a quick trip to google and do a search on how to prune fruit trees, particularly apple trees.

 

[ayelvington]

Checkout YouTube - stephenhayesuk's Channel on YouTube. He has a series on pruning trees that should help you out.

BTW: The fruit you're describing sounds like they may have been planted for cider and not munching. Cider (that's HARD CIDER) gets better from the kind of fruit you're describing. I recommend you see if you can find someone to identify which variety of tree you have. It could be valuable!

 

[dex3361]

I never put anything on the pruned limb. I also do not cut the limb any closer than about 1/4 inch to the trunk this leaves a cambium layer of the cut limb to make a nice closure. You can safely remove 1/3 of the tree limbs each year and sometimes it will seem like you are cutting the whole tree. So I decide what major cuts to make and mark them before I start so I do not get carried away. The Google suggestion is a good one and there are great pics of the cut pattern. Growing out not up and not is good to remember. It takes a few years to bring a tree back and it may never produce like it should. :thumbsup:

 

[wv8n]

Thanks yall ill check out youtube and google. Hopefully i can get them back into shape.

By the way dex where in wv are ya im up in jackson county.

 

[dex3361]

Northern Kanawha close to Roane County. Were neighbors.:thumbsup:

 

[Egon]

I've been pruning some wild apple trees out at the play farm for a few years now. The apples did get bigger and the bear destroyed the best tasting apple tree. Left me with a seven foot high stalk. Fortunately it's still growing.

Once you start pruning it's an ongoing chore.

 

[goat lady joyce]

You are getting lots of good advice on your pruning on this thread. I remember when I pruned my first apple trees. I was so nervous that I was going to ruin the trees, but I've learned that even if you under-prune a bit until you are more comfortable with doing this, it helps the tree immensely.

I found it helpful to stand looking at the tree and try to identify the most solid looking, spread out framework parts of the tree.

Good luck with your work. SO many valuable trees go under-utilized all over the place. This is essentially free food. I had a neighbor who let me pick apples off of a road side tree. As a return favor I offered to prune the following late winter. I think I got somehting ridiculous like 45 gallons of cider from that tree!!!

I'm not an expert by any means, but I think that regular pruning will help a tree to produce more evenly from year to year, rather than ultra heavy one year and nothing the next, etc.

Good luck with your efforts. You won't be disappointed.