Cutting back an apple tree

congo_90

Hey all,

I've a small (should be small) apple tree out back which has deicded in the last month to grow like its on steroids! Sadly I've been away so it was left to grow any way it felt which is all over the place. I know I can't cut back now as it's got apples on it at the moment.

My question is when and how much can I cut back off it?
It's a 'dwarf' type but clearly the tree forgot this

Thanks to all for any help!

dardevle

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hi congo, there is a technique for summer pruning that can be carried out at this time of year(mid july till the back end of august).basically you summer prune for next years fruit production and reduce the vigor of the tree or dwarf it. if you plan on having fruit trees in the garden for the long haul then i would suggest getting a book on fruiting trees that you can reference year round.



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cartom

I have what looks like little bits of white suds on my apple tree, does anyone know what it is.. Could it be a fungus or an insect?

keiran110

+1 dardevle

Also there are some rules to abide by when pruning:

1) Remove branches that have sharp angles to the main trunk. E.g, branches that are Y that kind of shape. It is prefered to have branches growing as perpendicular as possible to the main branch, sort of + shape. (if you get me)

2) prune off branchs growing down the way.

3) there should only be one "leader branch". This is the highest up part of the trunk. It should not seperate into several branchs or fork into two. Cut off the other branchs and leave the single strongest.

There are some other guidelines you should google. One thing i was always taught in college is not to be afraid to prune hard. Pruning hard is ok! Dont worry about the tree, it`l be fine. Pruning promotes growth anyway so your not actually damaging the plant. Your just giving it a haircut!

congo_90

keiran110 wrote: »

+1 dardevle

Also there are some rules to abide by when pruning:

1) Remove branches that have sharp angles to the main trunk. E.g, branches that are Y that kind of shape. It is prefered to have branches growing as perpendicular as possible to the main branch, sort of + shape. (if you get me)

2) prune off branchs growing down the way.

3) there should only be one "leader branch". This is the highest up part of the trunk. It should not seperate into several branchs or fork into two. Cut off the other branchs and leave the single strongest.

There are some other guidelines you should google. One thing i was always taught in college is not to be afraid to prune hard. Pruning hard is ok! Dont worry about the tree, it`l be fine. Pruning promotes growth anyway so your not actually damaging the plant. Your just giving it a haircut!

Thanks everyone this advice is truely appreciated! A lot of the lower older branches are crossing each other and have fruit on them.

Naturally I want some fruit from it so can I leave them like that until it's ready?

It seems to be growing up due to lighting conditions. The shed blocks the southern sun from it when we moved here. I'll try post pics this afternoon.

dardevle

.at this time you are probably best to leave the branches that have fruit on them alone....the weight of fruit on the branch may actually be pulling the branch down and across other branches but until the fruit is harvested you won't get a true picture of the direction that they are actually growing,this heavy pruning can be left til the dormant season.

..as for the reason for the growth it could be down to a number of factors such as location,quality of soil,feed etc but the variety of apple and the type of rootstock will usually tell you a lot about the vigor of the tree you have and how it should grow.



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