There’s an apple tree in the back yard. It’s been leaned over for a long time. Last November a tree limb fell on it and knocked it over even more. I decided it needs straightening, so I bought a tow strap and a cheap come-along. The rain-saturated ground is very soft and I’ve been pulling it upright. Every day I put about three ratchet clicks on the come-along. Once it’s upright I’ll cut a length of of a five-by-five-inch board to use as a brace. I’ll probably get an iron spike to make sure the bottom end doesn’t slide or get driven into the ground. I’ve cut off a limb on the ‘low side’, and the nub can support the top end of the board. I’ve also removed a higher branch that was a bit large. I’m trying to be careful not to snap the trunk. (i.e., I’m listening for any evidence of cracking.)
Is this going to work? (I’m not overly concerned. The apples aren’t very good for just eating. I’ve been told they could be good baking apples though.)
You can retrain trees like that. You get make them into really wacky patterns if you want. It may take a few years to make it perfect though. I would be most concerned with the strength of the brace. A supplemental and more conventional method is to reshape it with large stakes and guy wires, Those would probably hold better, be a little more flexible, and be a little more attractive. The stakes have to be rather big of course and the line has to be strong but you can get them at garden supply stores.
The ground is pretty soft here, so the stakes would have to be very long. The tree only needs the one line on it, so I wouldn’t need multiple lines. I was thinking a heavy-side support would be less obtrusive.
Be prepared for the tree to snap, if you apply to much tension, so keep people clear of the tree and remember the straps are just as dangerous if they break. Use a pice of rubber between the rope and tree when you stake it.
I didn’t have any rubber, but I recently put up a new patio roof. I used a bit of corrugated plastic I’d cut off to make room for the rain gutter downspout to protect the tree from the cable.
Lightening the side the it leans to will help keep the balance once straightened. Sometimes they get bad enough you have to say it cleans up good or it goes. I pressure washed two apple trees last fall because the lichen was to thick and harming the trees. I only penetrated the live bark in a couple small spots. Doing a pruning around the whole tree, might help the tree recover if roots have broken.
Unfortunately the tree was planted such that it gets most of its sun from one side. I did cut off two heavy branches on that side. I’ve no idea if the roots were damaged by the large branch that fell on it.
The tree will need a couple years of support by staking to allow the roots to stabilize the tree again. Don’t use heat conducting materials like wire when staking. The metal can burn the tree when the sun heats it up.