Besides growing veggies in my garden, you know I love growing fruit trees too. Our baby orchard now has everything from cherries, peaches, apples, nectarines and even lychees. We are still waiting for most of these young trees to be established and start producing fruit. In the mean time, I thought I would share with you some apple tree growing secrets, that I discovered recently.

If you want to maximize your tree production and ultimately have larger juicier apples, then you must pay attention to these tips from professional apple tree growers. It does not matter even if you only have one or two trees, these tips will help you get the ‘highest quality and quantity of fruit possible from every single tree’. Just implementing a few of these could give your tree(s) a major boost.

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Secret #1 – Pluck Off Blossoms Before Rain.

When the apple trees are still young, they tend to be easily affected by the disease known as fire blight. This disease only occurs when the trees are in bloom and two things happen consecutively. First rain enters the bloom and then that is followed immediately by warm weather. Therefore, by plucking the blooms of young plants before it rains, you help save the young plant. This should only be done in the first few years, while the tree is still establishing itself.

Secret #2 – Paint Bottom With ‘Tree Paint’.

In order to kill weeds that grow around your tree, you may have to spray weed killer. Before spraying, simply paint the bottom section with tree paint. That way when you spray the weeds, you reduce the risk of damaging the fragile young trees.

Secret #3 – Install Trellis For Wind Protection.

It is recommend that you install a trellis of some sort, to provide support for your tree. The tree can be tied using wire to a stake or post that is firmly in the ground. This will protect your tree from wind damage and allow it to concentrate on growing and not trying to survive harsh weather.

Secret #4 – Keep Your Trees Weed Free.

Weeding around your trees is not just for aesthetics. Small critters such as mice as well as other burrowing animals, love to play in areas with a lot of weeds. You do not want these pesky animals anywhere near the roots of your tree as they can cause irreversible damage. You can either spray to kill the weeds or remove them manually with your hands.

Step #5 – Thin Out Your Apple Clusters.

It is recommended that each cluster is left with just one apple, after thinning out your tree. This is done to prevent the apples from competing for nutrients as well as space. Extensive thinning encourages the growth of the apples, and the end result is bigger apples on your tree.

Step #6 – Prune The Bottom Of Your Apple Tree

The first 30 inches of your tree from the ground, should be kept branch free. This is done to help the tree grow upwards instead of outwards. As an end result, you will find that a lot of the growth will occur on the branches right at the top. Your tree will most likely be skinny, but that wont affect its yield.

You can get even more tips from the Real Farm House blog, here…