What types have you planted? How big were they when you planted them? Standard trees? Semi-dwarfs? Dwarfs? How long did they take before you got fruit? Bare rooted trees or potted? Do you believe in supposedly superior root stocks and hybrids? What other suggestions or tips do you have?
I have planted dwarfs and like them. This is after 5 years and it looked like a stick when we got it.
It is staked. I prune it before budding and hit it again late fall. I am not 100%, but think it is a regular dwarf. It's my youngest daughters tree and she has done well with it. She makes good apple crisp.
Just looked back and couldn't find any older pics at first glance. Here is one closer and the pear went nuts this year too. Gets bushy and really wacked the bottom this fall. Wonder if deer would like them?
Were going to be putting up apple trees this spring. I've been doing alot of research and talking to the local green house and they said when you do plant apple trees, you'll want to plant two different species of apple trees. Why, because they will pollinate each other much better. This is the info I've gathered but if anyone has any other info to throw in the pot, it would help us all!!!
We planted red delicious and some crap apples around 5 years ago. Last year one tree finally got some fruit on them. you have to be careful and possibly fence them in to where deer and rabbits and what not can't get to them in the early years. During the winter the rabbits love to eat the bark off these trees. We lost a couple because of that reason.
I've been throwing around the idea of planting some apple trees on our 40 acre property. Great information already in this thread!
I'm also looking at planting some fruit trees on the property I manage if I can get the landlord to agree.... I like winesap apples! Have some in a family orchard and they are freaking awesome...have to wait until a couple of good hard frosts before they are edible.
If you ask most guys that have had alot of success with apple trees for deer they hold out specifically for trees on B118 rootstock. They will tell you to spend the money to get a good known rooted tree instead of buying the leftovers at Menards that you dont know much about just cuz there on sale. Look for something that is disease resistant and make sure you have a pollinator for it nearby or that it is self pollinating. Most crabapples are good pollinators for most apple trees. Triple check so your not wondering why 7 years late your big pretty apple tree has not fruit. Another important factor is when the fruit matures and drops. Doesnt do you alot of good to be feeding the deer in August unless you want to get them used to hitting a spot for early season. The apples could be all gone long before the season opens. Ideally if you are planting 6 trees in an area you want something for early season, mid and then into December for most guys in the midwest. Prune your trees the first couple years to establish the shape you want. If you plant your tree and dont look at it for 3 years... then prune you have just wasted alot of growing energy letting the tree make a little fruit and popping out branches where you dont want them. I am guilty on that one. I am certainly not an expert pruner, but take off the low stuff that will get browsed overtime for sure. Doesnt make any sense to let a tree pop out a couple of 5 foot branches super low and then cut it off later. Get it right away and that energy can go into growing up or starting a scaffold at the 5 foot mark. Not 2 feet off the ground. I would never plant an apple or crabapple without putting a 4-6 foot high circle of fence around it and a guard on the tree for rabbit chewing. At the least you have to put it in a protective tube to keep bucks from rubbing on it. Be prepared to spend 20 bucks on the tree and 20 bucks to protect it. When you plant them write down in a log at home where and what they are and when you planted. Better yet get a metal tag attached right on the tree. I have 2 apple trees that never got documentated and the plastic tags are unreadable. Now that there growing well I dont know what the heck they are so I cant purchase more. Probably more important that anything else you can do with an apple tree is to get them in full sun and decent soil or it will take forever to get them going. Also there is some importance to getting them in morning sun to get the dew dried off which is said to help fight off most kinds of disease. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is the basics to the letter from a real guru on on QDMA website. This guy more experience than anyone I have ever seen. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Pick a south exposed, sunny location but close enough to cover so deer will visit the orchard frequently and before dark. The north side of a field is ideal. Choose disease resistant mix of varieties that drop early, mid and winter season. 2. Prepare your soil as if you were planting any other crop. Lime to 6.5, test soil for NPK and adjust accordingly. If you do not do this, you are wasting time, money and hard work planting apple trees. Mature apple tree roots run a 20' diameter horizontally. 3. Cage, stake and mulch your trees shortly after planting. Every year, the same posts come through in the winter "deer ate my apple trees!". Research this subject and pick the best materials for you. In budget terms, if given a choice of planting 5 trees, properly protected, vs 25 trees unprotected, go for the 5 option every time. 4. Keep the bugs off your young trees. Tent caterpillars, apple borers, ants, aphids are all sucking the life from your young tree. Make an effort to spray your young trees for insects, several times a summer. Learn to identify these pests. Spray entire tree, leaves, wood, all the way to the ground. Keep the grass mowed within 20' of your young trees to relieve insect pressure and allow birds to prey. Put bird houses around your orchard to encourage insect eaters, like swallows and finches. A sprayed tree will bear fruit much earlier. Plan to spray your trees for 5 years, minimum or 10 years preferably. 5. Train (preferably) or prune (remedial) young trees to a central leader. Establish a 10' central leader by year 3. Keep branch angles as perpendicular to the leader as possible by training when they first emerge. Cut all other vertical growth off your trees during dormancy or summer pruning, so the energy goes to the leader and structural branches. 6. Don't let a young tree overbear. Lots of folks here are growing Liberty and other drc's that are very early bearing. Thin your apples to 12" spacing between fruits until year 4 or 5, depending on roots. 7. Fertilize, remove weeds, renew mulch when necessary. If these guidelines are followed, after year 10, a fruit tree will fruit for 20 more years without any maintenance, but ideally, apple trees recieve annual or biennial maintenance (pruning)
I didnt write the bible on this stuff but after a failed batch/very slow growth of the first trees I was involved with, I read up on everything I could find to make sure the next batch would be successful. Again good advice from a pro that I am just repeating is to buy 5 and give them your best effort instead of buying 25 and half assing it. One thing we did on round 2 that was simple with very small 2 foot whips was to plant them in our garden for 2 season. They got a massive rootball and after transplanting to the woods they took right off. Some of the same whips 5 years later have never established any real growth. This year they are either going back to the garden for babysitting or to spots close to water so we can watch them better.
I also am into planting apple trees and finding older ones that need to be realeased. Fun stuff for sure.
Hey guys. How do you know which apple trees will produce early, mid, or late? Where do you find these trees? Also, what is the B118 rootstock? What about pear trees? Or is it the same steps to planting apple trees?
Rootstocks explained. Choosing a rootstock for your wildlife apple trees - QDMA Forums I cannot for the life of me come up with the calendar with when everything drops per tree from July to January. Honestly everything I have read comes from here. Forgive me if I shouldn't be using links from other sites and take it down. The QDMAer's Fruit Tree Resource Thread - QDMA Forums Stark bros has a listing on each apples page for when the fruit matures/drops. Its a really good resource although I have never ordered from them. http://www.starkbros.com/growing-guide/plant-manuals/fruit-trees/apple-trees/wolf-river-apple
Brad Check out the deer candy apples at Wolfraths they are by clintonville. I will be picking up some more this spring. I can pick some up for you. Dean
