Apples & Apple Tree Information

Apple Types at Afton Park Orchard

Cox's Orange Pippin	Spartan	James Grieve
Bramley's Seedling	Discovery	Ashmead's Kernel

Rootstocks
The rootstock determines the relative size of the tree but does not affect the type or quality of fruit that the tree bears. Different rootstocks control the size of the apple tree, regulates the tree's fruit-bearing age, and may offer some pest resistance.

Rootstock types and sizes are:

The best time to plant apple trees is the autumn. Trees can be planted all through the year but care needs to be taken to keep them watered if planted in the spring/summer months. Buy a healthy 1-year-old nursery tree, 4 to 6 feet tall, with a good root system. A small tree with a good root system will transplant better than a large tree. If you buy a bare rooted tree and you are unable to plant the tree immediately wrap the roots in plastic and keep them moist or "heel-in" the tree bydigging a hole and covering the roots with damp soil. The tree can be kept for several weeks using this way before permanently planting.

Planting Apple Trees
First dig a hole approximately twice the diameter of the root system and 2 feet deep. Place some of the loose soil back into the hole and loosen the soil on the walls of the planting hole so the roots can easily penetrate the soil. Spread the tree roots on the loose soil, making sure they are not twisted or crowded in the hole. Continue to replace soil around the roots. As you begin to cover the roots, firm the soil to be sure it surrounds the roots and to remove air pockets, Fill the remainder of the hole with the loose soil, and press down making sure the graft union is at least 2 inches above the soil. When you have finished planting the tree, water well to eliminate air pockets and provide good contact between the roots and the soil.

Pruning Apple Trees
Proper training and pruning of fruit trees is essential to the develop a strong tree framework that will support fruit production. Properly pruned trees will yield high-quality fruit much sooner and will live longer. Regular pruning and training will also improve light penetration to the developing flower buds and fruit as well as allowing adequate air movement through the tree, which promotes rapid drying to minimize pest problems.

There are several pruning demonstrations on Apple Day and tree pruning courses are run at Afton Park in the Autumn.

Care of Apple Trees
Apart from pruning, most apple trees require little attention. The main job is to thin out the fruits. If left to grow naturally, there will be a large crop of undersized apples, and the tree may well produce nothing at all the next year.

As soon as the fruits set and small but obvious apples are beginning to form, cut out the 'king' or central fruit from each cluster and remove all blemished and misshapen fruits. If the crop looks heavy, thin each cluster to one or two fruits around 10cm or 4" apart.

If a crop is very heavy branches may well break with the weight so be ready to thin out further or support the branch.

Harvesting Apples
The best test of when an apple is ready to eat is to try one. If it tastes good, it's ready! Another way is to hold the apple in the palm of your hand and give it a twist. If it drops off, it is probably ready to eat.

When harvesting take care not to bruise apples by dropping or knocking them as this will cause them to rot much more quickly, and the rot will often spread to other apples in storage.

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