Pruning and Caring for Apple Trees
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 1 4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 2 4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 3 4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 4 Pruning Objectives
To train a plant
To maintain plant health
To improve quality of flowers, fruit, foliage and stems
To control growth
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 5 Two Interrelated Processes
1. Sunlight and carbohydrate physiology
2. Plant hormone physiology (plant growth regulators)
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 6 1. Fruit Trees Require Sunlight !!!
Leaves require 30- 50%
Fruit need >70% Fiesta Apple
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 7 Prevent Heavy Shading
Site selection
Tree spacing
Proper limb positioning
Pruning (dormant & Summer)
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 8 Trees Love Sunshine
Eatable landscape
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 9 Apple Blossom State Flower: Arkansas & Michigan
Sekai-Ichi
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 10 Bees Love Sunshine
Mason Bee on plum
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 11 Everybody Loves The Sun
Summer Bellflower
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 12 Prune For Fruit Quality
Increase Light
Better Pollination
Reduce over cropping
Disease & pest Control
Frost peach
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 13 “What Makes An Apple Taste Good” (Soluble Solids – Sugars)
Lower in fruit from over-cropped trees.
Higher in well thinned crops.
Higher in fruit taken from sunny parts of tree.
Higher from trees with healthy foliage. 4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 14 Apple Scab
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 15 Anthracnose Canker
“bull’s-eye-rot” (when on fruit) [A fungus]
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 16 Anthracnose Limb Canker
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 17 2. Plant Growth Regulators (Hormones)
Auxins
Cytokinins
Gibberellins
Ethylene
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 18 Auxins (Produced in vertical growing tips)
Strong apical dominance Moves under gravity to roots Stimulates vertical growth Restricts lateral shoots Controlled by pruning and limb bending
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 19 Cytokinins
Produced in roots
Important in cell division and growth
Stimulates growth of laterals after Auxins have been reduced
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 20 Gibberellins
Produced in seeds and expanding leaves
Functional in fruit cell expansion & rate of growth
Can inhibit flower buds and cause bi-annual fruiting
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 21 Ethylene
Gaseous hormone Released after injury Accelerates healing (timing of heavy pruning)
Used to ripen fruit
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 22 Five Elements of Early Training & Care
1. Select rootstock 2. Variety selection 3. Proper planting 4. Early pruning 5. Limb bending [training]
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 23 1. Rootstock (critical)
Adaptability to soils Early fruiting Help control tree size
Standard trees are most hardy and vigorous
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 24 2. Variety Selection
Individual growth habit
Differing fruit bearing pattern
Ultimate tree size
Chill Hours Required
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 25 How Big Will My Tree Grow ?
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 26 Chill Requirement # of hrs. between 32 - 45 degrees F
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 27 Chill Hours temps. < 45 degrees
Apple 700-1800 E. Plum 800-900
Apricot 500-600 J. Plum 300-500
Cherry 700-800 Peach 600-800
E. Pear 600-800 Persimmon 200-400
A. Pear 400-500 Kiwi 600-800
Fig 100-200 Citrus 0
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 28 3. Planting
Warm sunny site
Adequate hole
Tree position in hole
Watering-in
Support
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 29 Support Young Tree
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 30 Serpent Tree (Apple trees go walking)
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 31 Eye of the Dragon
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 32 Permanent Support
Permanent Support
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 33 4. Early Pruning
Light Pruning
Remove damaged wood
Remove undesirable wood
Select strong scaffold limbs
Good angles and spacing
Head at 3-4 ft. to stimulate branching as needed
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 34 Notching:
Remove a piece of bark to produce a limb where needed.
Notching above a lateral bud in early spring prevents auxin from reaching the lateral bud, resulting in a limb.
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 35 Vase-like Form
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 36 Pyramid Form
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 37 Vase-like Form
Spartan apple
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 38 Limb Pattern
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 39 Four Main Limbs
With vertical separation
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 40 Tight Limb Cluster
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 41 Five Can Get Crowded
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 42 Three are Okay
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 43 Limb Angle
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 44 5. Limb Bending and Positioning
45-60 degree limb angles (3-5 well spaced) Apical dominance is reduced Limb elongation is reduced Lateral branching is increased Branches are stiffened Flower density is increased
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 45 Limb Bending
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 46 Tie-Down
Bowline Knot
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 47 Limb Spreading
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 48 Branch Replacement
2-year old upright shoot tied down to 60 degrees for replacement branch
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 49 Limb Bending
Sometimes a heavy fruit load can be used to lower growing tips
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 50 Good Angles & Spacing
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 51 Narrow Weak Angle
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 52 Advanced Decay
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 53 Weepy Branch
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 54 Types of Pruning Cuts
Heading
Thinning
Not safe for pruning
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 55 Definition: Limb v. Branch
Limb – entire appendage all the way back to the main trunk
Branch – Intermediate appendages attached to a limb or to other branches.
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 56 1. Heading Cuts
Control height or Size
Most invigorating type of cut
Reduce apical dominance
Stimulates new shoots
Stiffens the branches Useful to induce branching at specific points (especially in young trees)
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 57 Heading of Young Tree
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 58 Heading Older Tree
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 59 Tree Too Tall?
PNW 400
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 60 2. Thinning Cuts
Thin for light penetration, fruit quality and keep bearing wood young.
A tree maintenance function
Removes undesired wood Shorten limbs Control amount of growth Directs growth Reduce total amount of fruiting wood
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 61 Types of Thinning Cuts
Removal of entire limb to main trunk
Shorten limb or branch back to a lateral branch or vigorous bud
Remove strong upright water sprouts or shoots
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 62 PNW 400
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 63 Pollination
Apples are: Genetically diverse
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 64 Parts of a Flower
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 65 Apple Pollination Chart
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 66 Apple Truisms
Fertilization is necessary to produce seeds. (individually)
Fruit rarely develop without seeds.
Most apples have 5-10 seeds.
With < 3 seeds, an apple will usually drop.
Misshapen or lopsided fruit indicate inadequate pollination.
More seeds = larger the fruit.
Rain, wind, cool weather can inhibit pollination.
>55 degree weather okay -- with enough bees.
Mason Bees will be active sooner than Honey Bees.
Only 2-8 % of apple blossoms need pollination to set full load of fruit. 4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 67
Apple Blossom
King blossom
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 68 Pear Blossoms
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 69 Plum Flowers
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 70 Thinning Fruit
Improve size and quality
Early is better than later Ultimate fruit size is greater Promotes fruit bud development for next year Helps prevent bi-annual fruiting
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 71 Nutrient Sink Interactions
Vegetative sinks
Roots, steams, leaves
Fruit are major sinks
Balance vegetative growth and fruit load (pruning & thinning)
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 72 Fruit are Nutrient Sinks
Liberty apple
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 73 When Should I Prune ?
A L W A Y S
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 74 When Should I prune ?
ANYTIME PRUNING Remove dead, damaged, diseased Crowded, weak, low vigor Interfering, wrong way, and bottom branches. Unwanted suckers.
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 75 When Should I Prune
DORMANT PRUNING Best time for heavy pruning Clear view without leaves Just Before bud swell is best Quicker start for healing Less overall stress Greatest growth response Best for restoration of old trees
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 76 Old Tree Restored
Yellow Transparent
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 77 Happy is He
Homestead apple
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 78 Strong Branches
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 79 Same Apple Tree
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 80 Restored by Heading & Grafting
Top-Worked to Liberty
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 81 Bark Grafts on Large Branch Stubs
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 82 Two Restored Apple Trees with Electric Elk Fence Protection
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 83 Restored Gravenstein
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 84 Aggressive Action Required
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 85 Restored King Apple
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 86 Restored Yellow Transparent
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 87 100 Year Old Homestead Apple Tree
(Too fragile to restore)
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 88 Death Defying
Granddad’s old apple
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 89 Restorable ? ? ? ? ? ?
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 90 What Say You ? ? ?
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 91 The Planter
(Elderberry)
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 92 Bad News
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 93 What Now ????
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 94 Stimulated Growth
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 95 Before and After
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 96 EC 1005
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 97 Before and After
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 98 Before Pruning
King apple
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 99 After Pruning
Thinning cuts
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 100 When Should I Prune ?
SUMMER PRUNING For reduced growth response Top removal in small trees Remove small unwanted shoots Remove water sprouts when six inches and longer
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 101 When Not Removed
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 102 Getting Started
You know what you want
But how to get there??? A. Start with the obvious B. Decide how high C. Remove big wood early D. Wander and ponder E. When is enough???
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 103 Pruning Technique
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 104 Healing Process
Callus growth
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 105 Large Wound
Grafted stump
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 106 Delayed Healing
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 107 Water Hole
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 108 Dental Work
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 109 Large Wounds
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 110 Limb Fractures
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 111 Limb Fracture
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 112 Fracture Repair
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 113 Fracture Repair
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 114 Healing Over
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 115 Complete Blowout
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 116 Preventing Fractures
Prune
Thin
Prop
Prop as a last resort, and only after the first two fail.
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 117 To Remove Large Limb
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 118 Rip-Tear
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 119 Preserve Limb Collar
Collar
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 120 Zero Ground Clearance
Freedom apple
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 121 Ground Clearance
Lawn mower high
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 122 Orchard Mason Bees
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 123 Honey Bee
will sneak up and over the edge to collect nectar
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 124 Active Bee Block
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 125 Rewards Day
Liz Olsen Photo
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 126 Art by Carol DeMuth
Toledo, OR
4/5/2011 Loyd Collett, Easter Valley Ranch 127