Apple trees! It sometimes pays to be tough. Have you tried it?  |
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|  The apple trees in the picture are a James Grieve in the foreground and behind it a Cox's Orange. The James Grieve has regularly produced fruit but had grown quite straggly. The Cox's had not produced anything in the last 6 years or so. In spring I considered taking the Cox's completely away but decided to give it one last chance and I cut it back to less than half it's size. I did the same with the other to improve it's shape. Both trees are now absolutely laden with apples.
The James Grieve is a very tasty crisp apple. The Cox's is also tasty but harder.
I did not just randomly hack off branches here and there but cut carefully where I thought it would produce new shoots and also cut a lot away from the centre to give them more air and light. They have both responded well to my very harsh treatment and will provide my friends and family with all the lovely sweet apples they can eat.
For cooking apples I have the 71 year old Booskop.
If you have an old apple tree do not be frightened to give it a severe "short back and sides".
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Apple trees. | | | | |
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| | Minnesota Apple Orchards Statewide directory of 100 orchards. Fresh apples, cider, pies& fun. www.minnesotagrown.com
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1.  catdla1 (3698)
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3 years ago
| |  No wonder you have so many apples to give away! Did you ever come up with a game plan for what to do with the extras? My vote was for hard cider....lol
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 Colmuc (377)
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3 years ago
| | Hi catdla, Thanks for responding. I have not yet solved the problem. Some suggested making sorbet and I found an easy recipe but it might be better to use the sweet apples for that. Will have to check what I need to make cider. Problem is that I am usually only at the house where my garden is at the weekend. So anything that needs regular watching is a problem. I love cider and it is not available here so it would be a great solution. | | | |
| catdla1 (3698)
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3 years ago
| | The traditional method is to mash the apples and use a press to squeeze the juice out. Here is an article on making small batches without needing a lot of equipment. Basically you run it through your food processor and then squeeze the juice out using a fine-mesh bag and a rolling pin. (INFORMATIN ONLY) http://extension.missouri...
When I used to live in the New England/New York areas, there was a farmer who used old printing presses for his cider. If you like hard cider, here's an article on that too. (INFORMATION ONLY) http://www.ostgardr.org/b... | | | |
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| 2. Lakota12 (23205)
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3 years ago
| |  Have no apple tree here neighbor planted 2 peach trees and they had quarter size peaches this year so next year they should be bigger.
So glad that your pruning got results
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| Colmuc (377)
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3 years ago
| | Hi Lakota, nice to hear from you again. I don't think peaches would grow here except in a heated glass house. Too bad because I love them. I have almost no blackcurrants or damsons on the trees this year but will, in the next couple of weeks, have pailfuls of raspberries. | | | |
| Lakota12 (23205)
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3 years ago
| | wow love rasberries I miss going to my grandmas house and eatting them every year.
the grounds have been sold off a long time ago after she died
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| Colmuc (377)
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3 years ago
| | Hi kalaga, I hope your pear tree grows well. We used to say plant pears for your heirs because they took so long to start fruiting. Modern varieties fruit much quicker now. Don't forget that some varieties of fruit need a mate of a different variety to cross pollinate so the fruit sets. Is your pear tree self polinating? | | | |
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| Colmuc (377)
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3 years ago
| | Hi Alice, did you ever try bramble and apple pie? My sister used to live in the hills above Loch Lomond and always picked the wild brambles so she could make a pie for me when I visited her. I have never tried making a pie but make loads of crumbles. How is your tomato plant doing? Col. | | | |
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