| apple_production_and_variety_recommendations_for_the_utah_home_ga.pdf |
Varieties
Some of the most popular cultivars grown in Utah include Gala, Honeycrisp, Jonathon, Golden Delicious, Jonagold, Red Delicious, and Fuji. Varieties like Granny Smith, Mutsu, and Rome Beauty may require a warm microclimate to properly ripen fruit. When selecting a cultivar consider how you want to use the fruit, the taste you prefer, and the desired season of ripening. Some apples are good for multiple purposes, while others are best for cooking or for eating fresh. Grocery stores are now carrying a broad selection of apples to appeal to every taste. Unfortunately, some of the newer cultivars are only available to licensed, commercial growers.
Some people have fond memories of older apples such as Yellow Transparent, Wolf River, Lodi, and McIntosh. While these were good apples when they first became popular, most are surpassed in flavor, crispness, and storage quality by newer selections. Some lesser known apples are disease resistant, but the quality of these apples is only moderate.
Apples
Home grown apples are a delight in the crisp days of late summer and fall. Apples are more cold hardy than many tree fruits and can be grown in most areas of Utah. There are many good cultivars of apples with different ripening times from late July to mid-November.
Rootstocks
Apple trees are propagated by grafting a scion cultivar (Gala, for example) onto a rootstock. For home planting, apple trees on full dwarfing rootstocks are preferred. Trees on dwarfing rootstocks occupy less space, don’t grow as tall, and are easier to prune and for pest control. Apple trees on dwarfing rootstocks are available from mail-order nurseries and good quality local garden centers.
Soil Preparation
Apple trees are adapted to many soil types but require well drained soil. They should not be planted where water stands for more than 24 hours unless soil drainage can be improved. Control perennial weeds in the area before planting. Incorporate organic matter in the year prior to planting.
Planting
Plant trees in the spring or fall. Trees can be transplanted in the summer months but it is much more stressful to the plant and careful attention to irrigation is critical. Trees can be purchased as bare root or potted plants. For bare root trees, dig a hole wide enough to easily spread all of the roots out and deep enough to cover the roots, but keeping the graft union 2-3 inches above the final soil line. Fill in the hole with the soil removed without amendments. Firm the soil around the roots and water immediately.
For potted plants, dig a hole the same depth and twice as wide as the root ball. If roots are circling the inside of the pot (common) make vertical cuts with a knife and ‘fluff’ the roots slightly as you plant the tree. Set the tree at a height to keep the graft union 2-3 inches above the soil line. Depending on rootstock and training system, apple trees will have a mature radius of six to eight feet. Almost all apples cultivars require cross pollination with another apple cultivar or a crabapple tree that is within a few hundred yards. In most urban or suburban areas sufficient apple and crabapple trees exist so homeowners will get fruit with only a single apple tree.
Apple trees should be staked at planting. Place the stake 2-3 inches from the trunk and fasten with non-metallic fasteners. Staking helps protect the graft union and helps maintain the central leader of the tree.
Irrigation
Apple trees require regular irrigation throughout the growing season. Irrigate less frequently (7-10 days) with a deep soak to allow water to penetrate throughout the entire root zone. This can be done using drip systems, soaker hoses, or hand watering. Avoid irrigating with sprinklers in order to keep the tree canopy dry, prevent foliar diseases, and minimize fruit exposure to untreated irrigation water. Keeping new apple trees well-irrigated during establishment is critical. However, excessive water will damage roots and make the tree susceptible to diseases. When watering established trees, irrigation water should be applied every 7 to 10 days (depending on soil type and the heat index) and penetrate to a depth of 18 to 24 inches.
Apple trees are propagated by grafting a scion cultivar (Gala, for example) onto a rootstock. For home planting, apple trees on full dwarfing rootstocks are preferred. Trees on dwarfing rootstocks occupy less space, don’t grow as tall, and are easier to prune and for pest control. Apple trees on dwarfing rootstocks are available from mail-order nurseries and good quality local garden centers.
Soil Preparation
Apple trees are adapted to many soil types but require well drained soil. They should not be planted where water stands for more than 24 hours unless soil drainage can be improved. Control perennial weeds in the area before planting. Incorporate organic matter in the year prior to planting.
Planting
Plant trees in the spring or fall. Trees can be transplanted in the summer months but it is much more stressful to the plant and careful attention to irrigation is critical. Trees can be purchased as bare root or potted plants. For bare root trees, dig a hole wide enough to easily spread all of the roots out and deep enough to cover the roots, but keeping the graft union 2-3 inches above the final soil line. Fill in the hole with the soil removed without amendments. Firm the soil around the roots and water immediately.
For potted plants, dig a hole the same depth and twice as wide as the root ball. If roots are circling the inside of the pot (common) make vertical cuts with a knife and ‘fluff’ the roots slightly as you plant the tree. Set the tree at a height to keep the graft union 2-3 inches above the soil line. Depending on rootstock and training system, apple trees will have a mature radius of six to eight feet. Almost all apples cultivars require cross pollination with another apple cultivar or a crabapple tree that is within a few hundred yards. In most urban or suburban areas sufficient apple and crabapple trees exist so homeowners will get fruit with only a single apple tree.
Apple trees should be staked at planting. Place the stake 2-3 inches from the trunk and fasten with non-metallic fasteners. Staking helps protect the graft union and helps maintain the central leader of the tree.
Irrigation
Apple trees require regular irrigation throughout the growing season. Irrigate less frequently (7-10 days) with a deep soak to allow water to penetrate throughout the entire root zone. This can be done using drip systems, soaker hoses, or hand watering. Avoid irrigating with sprinklers in order to keep the tree canopy dry, prevent foliar diseases, and minimize fruit exposure to untreated irrigation water. Keeping new apple trees well-irrigated during establishment is critical. However, excessive water will damage roots and make the tree susceptible to diseases. When watering established trees, irrigation water should be applied every 7 to 10 days (depending on soil type and the heat index) and penetrate to a depth of 18 to 24 inches.
| orchard_irrigation__apple.pdf |
Weed Control
Keep vegetation (especially turfgrass) at least three feet away from apple tree trunks. This prevents damaging the trunk by mowers and string trimmers and reduces competition allowing trees access to nutrients and water in this region. Grass can be killed with a non-residual herbicide, then the area covered with a layer of mulch such as shredded bark or chips to reduce re-growth.
Fertilization
Trees less than 3 years old should average about 12 to 15 inches of new shoot growth per year. If shoot growth is more than 24 inches, do not apply nitrogen to trees. For underperforming trees 3 years old or less, apply ½ cup of 20-0- 0, in a circle around the root-zone in early spring, before the tree forms leaves, and then water the fertilizer into the soil. A second application may be needed in mid-May. Do not fertilize after mid-July. Trees older than 4 years should grow approximately 1 foot per year (excluding the water sprouts). For trees not growing at this rate, apply 1 to 2 cups of 20-0- 0 in early spring. If phosphorus and/or potassium are deficient (based on tissue or soil tests), apply a similar quantity of 16-16- 16, or an equivalent balanced fertilizer.
Problems
Apples often set more fruit than they are capable of properly maturing. Thinning (selective removal of some small fruit) improves fruit quality by encouraging better color development and improved size of remaining fruit. Thin 2-3 weeks after petal fall by hand removing smaller fruit and leaving the largest apple in a cluster. Space remaining apples about every 6-8 inches along branches. Timing of thinning is critical. Thinning done later than a month after petal fall is ineffective.
Determining when apples are ripe can be challenging. One of the best methods is to simply taste several apples. A mature apple that is ready to harvest should not have any starchiness in the taste. Good apples usually have a balance of sweetness and acid for a full bodied flavor.
Producing the best fruit requires control of diseases and insects.
Keep vegetation (especially turfgrass) at least three feet away from apple tree trunks. This prevents damaging the trunk by mowers and string trimmers and reduces competition allowing trees access to nutrients and water in this region. Grass can be killed with a non-residual herbicide, then the area covered with a layer of mulch such as shredded bark or chips to reduce re-growth.
Fertilization
Trees less than 3 years old should average about 12 to 15 inches of new shoot growth per year. If shoot growth is more than 24 inches, do not apply nitrogen to trees. For underperforming trees 3 years old or less, apply ½ cup of 20-0- 0, in a circle around the root-zone in early spring, before the tree forms leaves, and then water the fertilizer into the soil. A second application may be needed in mid-May. Do not fertilize after mid-July. Trees older than 4 years should grow approximately 1 foot per year (excluding the water sprouts). For trees not growing at this rate, apply 1 to 2 cups of 20-0- 0 in early spring. If phosphorus and/or potassium are deficient (based on tissue or soil tests), apply a similar quantity of 16-16- 16, or an equivalent balanced fertilizer.
Problems
Apples often set more fruit than they are capable of properly maturing. Thinning (selective removal of some small fruit) improves fruit quality by encouraging better color development and improved size of remaining fruit. Thin 2-3 weeks after petal fall by hand removing smaller fruit and leaving the largest apple in a cluster. Space remaining apples about every 6-8 inches along branches. Timing of thinning is critical. Thinning done later than a month after petal fall is ineffective.
Determining when apples are ripe can be challenging. One of the best methods is to simply taste several apples. A mature apple that is ready to harvest should not have any starchiness in the taste. Good apples usually have a balance of sweetness and acid for a full bodied flavor.
Producing the best fruit requires control of diseases and insects.
| utah_home_orchard_pest_management_guide.pdf~rf347eac6a.tmp |
Pruning
Begin pruning and training trees at planting. If the tree is unbranched, make a single cut 36 to 40 inches above the soil line. This will encourage side branches that will become permanent scaffold branches. In the first early spring following initial planting select the uppermost branch as the central leader. Keep the best 4-5 lateral branches below that as scaffolds. Pruning a young tree controls its shape by developing a strong, well-balanced framework of scaffold branches. The preferred method of training apple trees in the home orchard is the Central Leader System. This produces a tree that is wider at the bottom than it is at the top (conical shape). This provides better illumination of all leaves than older ‘umbrella’ shaped trees.
Begin pruning and training trees at planting. If the tree is unbranched, make a single cut 36 to 40 inches above the soil line. This will encourage side branches that will become permanent scaffold branches. In the first early spring following initial planting select the uppermost branch as the central leader. Keep the best 4-5 lateral branches below that as scaffolds. Pruning a young tree controls its shape by developing a strong, well-balanced framework of scaffold branches. The preferred method of training apple trees in the home orchard is the Central Leader System. This produces a tree that is wider at the bottom than it is at the top (conical shape). This provides better illumination of all leaves than older ‘umbrella’ shaped trees.
| training_and_pruning_apple_trees.pdf |
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