When we moved into our house six years ago, we got a giant apple tree in the back yard. It’s pretty prolific (weirdly enough in late June to early August), but the lowest branches are mostly out of reach, and there’s no way to get to the upper ones at all; furthermore, many of the branches are dead. I’d love to be able to harvest apples from it, and this might be the winter for pruning. However, I’m not sure what the options are.
Is there any way to prune a tree this size such that the apples will be harvestable without a huge stepladder? Maybe if we have someone cut off the top of the tree, the lower branches will bear correspondingly more fruit. Will it produce branches or shoots from lower on the trunk, or only from the top? Could branches be grafted lower down?
I’m guessing the answer to these questions are, “no, you botanical ignoramus,” but I figure I’d ask anyway. One more question: if the tree is cut down to the roots, how likely are we to get another tree to grow from the root system? That occurred to me that it might be the best solution, giving us a decent-sized tree with a spectacular root system in five or so years.
Not the tree per se, but one option is to get an apple-picker. That’s a long pole with a sort of basket with a double hook at the end: You hook the hooks around the stem and pull, and the apple falls into the basket. That way, you can harvest apples from branches high out of reach, without having to go up on a ladder yourself.
When I had my ~60 ft white pine pruned, the guy used a rope and harness to swing around in the tree working from top to bottom trimming dead branches and others he deemed needing to be removed. He used a chainsaw and a hand saw or two. Not something I would want to do but he was pretty effortless moving around the tree. I would guess that you would need somebody along those lines. It wasn’t cheap but that was three or four years ago and the tree is really healthy looking still.
You’re not going to find a reputable tree maintenance company who’ll lop off the top of the tree. That’s called “topping”, and it’s very much not indicated. It’s ugly, it seriously damages the tree, and it actually defeats its own purpose, since the tree is stimulated by being reduced to stubs to put out MORE growth in an even bushier pattern.
I heartily recommend contacting your county Extension office for advice.
Most modern apple trees are grown on grafted roots, and if that’s the case, anything that grows from the roots will not be the same as what is currently bearing fruit.
If that tree ever need to come down. Don’t just cut it up and haul it off or burn it. Some trees are extremely valuable due to the kind of wood.
I recall a story not long ago where some guy was recalling cutting down a big cherry and burning it. Some other guy comes along and tells him that wood was worth 10 or 20 thousand or something like that.
I doubt apple wood it THAT rare, but it still might be nice chunk of change should you cut it down.
Hey, Daniel,
I don’t know much about apples, but, if it’s a grafted tree, as Freckafree says, cutting it down totally could result in root sprouts that are not at all like the originally desired apples.
Luckily, you have a great Ag resource right down the road in Fletcher, near the Asheville airport: NCSU Mountain Horticulture Research Station. Apple crops link right up there near the top of the page. We are lucky in NC to have really top-notch Extension agents, who know their stuff. My experience with them is great. They should be able to answer your questions.
Also, if it is a really old tree, it may be an heirloom variety that should be propagated, and the Ag folks might be interested in that.
A rootstock graft is normally within the first 6 to 12 inches above ground. Severe pruning will not lose the desired variety.
Purchased trees with multiple variety grafts are normally grafted in the 3 to 5 foot level. Severe pruning can lose you some varieties if you are not careful.
Consider posting your question on the message board of the North American Fruit Explorers (a network of Americans and Canadians dedicated to the appreciation of fruits and nuts (no sniggering, please). These folks are gaga on the subject of fruit trees and would no doubt have a lot of helpful suggestions about pruning and fruit accessibility. You might even find out that your tree is a rare heirloom.
Apart from that, the idea of cutting down the tree and getting a smaller easier-to-manage specimen is not going to work out well. More likely you’d wind up with a bunch of messy sprouts coming out around the stump. Judicious pruning that preserves the shape and health of the tree is a better idea.
I have severe pruned a standard sized tree before. It was that or remove it. I looked nice 5 years later. You could also lose it. You’re usually safe removing a third of the existing live wood per year.
Thanks for the advice, y’all! I’m not sure how to judge how tall the tree is, not even with trigonometry (I wasn’t paying attention in class). It’s significantly taller than our two-story-plus-attic house, although the bottom story is half-underground. Maybe 30 feet or so? I’ll check with the county Extension office; that’s a great idea!
Apple trees can definitely be pruned to be more fruit bearing, but there is a specific way to do it. Go with the above advice and contact your Ag extension.
You have a standard apple tree then. I suggest you get help from somebody that can show you how to prune it. It will never be a small tree. It doesn’t take many years to get apples from a semi dwarf tree after planting it so you know.