Bradford County Conservation District
  • Home
  • About
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Events
  • Contact

CONSERVATION CORNER

A weekly blog for all things conservation

Trimming Those Old Apple Trees

2/10/2020

3 Comments

 
Picture
By Tim Russell, Quality Deer Management Association Certified Forester
Excerpt taken from Quality Deer Management newsletter. To learn more about QDMA or to sign up for their newsletter, visit www.qdma.com
​
Apple trees can provide an ample supply of quality food to whitetail deer and often retain fruit late into the season, continuing to drop apples into the winter. While establishing new food sources on your property can positively impact the herd’s nutrition, the abandoned, overgrown orchards that pepper the landscape in some regions can offer a great deal with some revitalization. If you are lucky enough to have an old apple tree or orchard where you hunt, consider reclaiming it by following these three steps.

​1. Thin Out Competitors
If your apple orchard has been neglected, it is likely you have noticed other trees becoming established. Reducing competition (primarily for sunlight) by removing these pioneers is necessary for the orchard to remain viable. If left to grow unchallenged, their shade will slow fruit production, cause dieback in the crowns of your apple trees and eventually kill them. The fix here is simple: cut down the competitors. Be sure to use directional felling techniques that will help you prevent damage to your apple trees. If the orchard is surrounded closely by woodland, it may be best to clear out around the orchard as well. The more direct sunlight on apple trees, the better.
2. Prune Your Trees
The main difference between pruning an old apple tree and working with a young one is that you will not be shaping its overall architecture. Rather, the goal is to stimulate the more vigorous growth and improve fruit production. Do this in late winter, when the tree is dormant and will soon have nutrients flowing to the branch tips as spring arrives. First, remove all dead and broken branches from the tree. Now you know what you’re working with. Next, get rid of sprouts emerging from the base of the tree. Then remove branches from dense clumps, especially where branches cross or rub against one another. You will want to cut out branches that are pointing downward or inward. Try to retain the healthiest looking ones, especially those that come off the larger limbs at a right-angle. This will allow more light and air to reach remaining branches. Last, cut back about a third of the newest growth on the branches you have retained, positioning each cut so that a bud is left near the new tip of the branch. Keep in mind that the direction a bud is facing is the direction next year’s growth will take. This will help you guide next year’s branches away from one another. Do not cut larger limbs that offer needed structural support, and don’t try to do too much pruning in one season.
3. Manage Surrounding Vegetation
There are different strategies for dealing with understory vegetation in the orchard, and each is based around the desired result. Depending on your strategy, it may be necessary to remove trees that have been felled during the first step. Regularly mowing between the trees will allow easy access to the interior of the orchard for hunting and for future maintenance. This will also prevent new competitors from being established. However, allowing herbaceous cover to develop between your apple trees will offer additional forage to hungry deer. This would mean mowing less frequently but still in time to suppress encroaching shrubs and tall grasses. Alternatively, you may choose to let taller, brushy vegetation like shrubs and saplings establish themselves over time. Doing so will provide the sort of dense cover that is good fawning habitat and encouraging to other wildlife like quail, grouse, rabbit, and woodcock. Sprouts emerging from the stumps or roots of trees that you have felled may contribute to this condition. This approach will entail the least frequent maintenance. If following this approach, be sure not to let pioneer-tree heights reach the point of over-topping your apple trees once again!
Don’t fertilize your apple trees for the first season after your rehab. Overabundant nitrogen may result in excessive sprouting. Watch how your trees respond and go from there. You can also have your soil analyzed, just like soil testing for a food plot, to help identify nutrient deficiencies.
The Bradford County Conservation District is committed to helping people manage resources wisely.  You can visit the Bradford County Conservation District at 200 Lake Rd in Wysox across from the Wysox Fire Hall.  Contact us at (570) 485-3144 or visit our web page at www.bccdpa.com.
 
3 Comments
Amanda Fraser link
8/25/2021 12:52:57 am

I was reading your blog post about old apple trees and I found it very insightful.

It's a really great article that provides information on how you can rejuvenate an overgrown orchard, so the whitetail deer will have more to eat in the winter. You also offer some tips on how to make sure the food is of high quality for them. It's a fantastic read!

Reply
WV Landscaping link
8/25/2021 01:42:50 am

I saw your blog post on apple trees and deer. I also have a lot of apple trees that are not producing as much fruit as they should be. It would be great to know more about why these trees are underproducing and how to fix the problem!

Thanks for all the info you provide in your posts--this was quite helpful!

Reply
landscaper nanaimo link
12/5/2021 07:51:25 pm


I found this article quite interesting. I bet you're pretty busy with all the work it takes to care for an old apple tree. It sounds like a lot of work!

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Authors

    Various staff at the Bradford County Conservation District

    Archives

    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Agriculture
    Chapter 102
    Chapter 105
    Community
    Conservation Planning
    County Initiative
    Cover Crop
    DGLVR
    Earth Day
    Education
    Energy
    Events
    Farmland Preservation
    Floodplain
    Forest Pests
    Forestry
    Grazing
    Home & Garden
    Interseeder
    Manure Management
    Native Species
    No Till Garden
    Nutrient Management
    Outreach
    Permitting
    Pollinators
    Ponds
    Riparian Buffer
    Scholarship
    Soil Health
    Storm Water
    Stream Crossings
    Streams
    Watershed
    Wildlife

Picture
Bradford County Conservation District
Stoll Natural Resource Center
200 Lake Road, Suite E | Towanda PA 18848
Phone: (570)-485-3144

Find Us on Social Media!
  • Home
  • About
  • Resources
  • Blog
  • Events
  • Contact