Care of Apple trees - Ask Extension
Hello,
I moved into a home with two apple trees planted on the west side of the house. I don't know what kind they are or how to care for them. The ...
Knowledgebase
Care of Apple trees #362673
Asked September 14, 2016, 4:07 PM EDT
Hello,
I moved into a home with two apple trees planted on the west side of the house. I don't know what kind they are or how to care for them. The apples that have fallen off seem to have many holes in them and the trees in general look like they haven't been taken care of. Can you suggest some ideas about where to start t learn about how to get better apple quality? Thanks.
Polk County Oregon
Expert Response
Hi,
Thanks for contacting Ask an Expert. The trees look pretty good, some clean up is necessary. Do both trees have the same type of apple? The ones that have fallen did they turn yellow? If you would send a close up of some of the fallen apples, it will help ID them and what type insect made the holes.
I will send you some pruning information next time we talk. They need to be cut back to get the air flow in and sprayed. They look like they are in a deck or fenced area, do you want to cut them back a lot of just a little bit?
Thanks for contacting Ask an Expert. The trees look pretty good, some clean up is necessary. Do both trees have the same type of apple? The ones that have fallen did they turn yellow? If you would send a close up of some of the fallen apples, it will help ID them and what type insect made the holes.
I will send you some pruning information next time we talk. They need to be cut back to get the air flow in and sprayed. They look like they are in a deck or fenced area, do you want to cut them back a lot of just a little bit?
Thanks so much for your response! I will send you a picture of the apples tomorrow as soon as I get off work. I do think they wed to be pruned, I'm just not sure how much. They are growing outside our fence and about 10 feet tall. I'll be in touch tomorrow.
Hi Again,
This computer program has given me a "nudge" to contact you or close your question. I have listed two sites with information on pruning for you to review. I use lime sulfur with a surfecant (oil - I use vegetable cooking oil - a tablespoon usually if I am making a 2 gallon solution) added to make the spray adhere to the leaves and Neem oil. These are organic. I spray once a month, using first Neem oil in October, then lime/sulfur in November and lime/sulfur again in December with a dormant oil, (this is different from the other oil). You can buy these anywhere nursery or plant products are sold. Do not use on the trees when they have flower buds or are blossoming. Neem oil will kill any insect it is sprayed on and you do not want the bees killed. Neem oil is a fungicide, and miticide (kills mites) and will kill insects that eat leaves or fruit (if sprayed monthly after the blossom petals fall).
If you can take some pictures of the fruit, I will see about id'ing it. Take one of an apple sitting on a table with your hand near it so I can get an idea of size. Color is also important. If you suspect they have insect damage, take a picture of the outside where the damage is, and then cut it open and show any damage there is on the inside please. Here are the links to more pruning info:
http://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/1957/22166/pnw400.pdf
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/gardening/prune-fruit-trees-winter
This computer program has given me a "nudge" to contact you or close your question. I have listed two sites with information on pruning for you to review. I use lime sulfur with a surfecant (oil - I use vegetable cooking oil - a tablespoon usually if I am making a 2 gallon solution) added to make the spray adhere to the leaves and Neem oil. These are organic. I spray once a month, using first Neem oil in October, then lime/sulfur in November and lime/sulfur again in December with a dormant oil, (this is different from the other oil). You can buy these anywhere nursery or plant products are sold. Do not use on the trees when they have flower buds or are blossoming. Neem oil will kill any insect it is sprayed on and you do not want the bees killed. Neem oil is a fungicide, and miticide (kills mites) and will kill insects that eat leaves or fruit (if sprayed monthly after the blossom petals fall).
If you can take some pictures of the fruit, I will see about id'ing it. Take one of an apple sitting on a table with your hand near it so I can get an idea of size. Color is also important. If you suspect they have insect damage, take a picture of the outside where the damage is, and then cut it open and show any damage there is on the inside please. Here are the links to more pruning info:
http://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/1957/22166/pnw400.pdf
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/gardening/prune-fruit-trees-winter
Thank you for all the advice! The apples are green and turn a yellow red when they are ripe or fall. Here are some pictures of the marks on the apples.
And a few more pictures. Most apples are this size but we've had a few really big ones as well. I'll go buy some of the sprays today and call someone to prune them this year for me until I can learn how to do it myself.
You definitely have codling moth damage. The moth lays her eggs on leaves and sometimes fruit, then the larva find their way to the apple, (They also infest pears and other fruits). Google codling moth damage and click on images, you will see exactly what is on your apples. They overwinter under loose bark at the bottom of the tree or litter around the tree. Clean out the leaves this fall, and disturb the earth with a garden rake around the trees. This will help reduce the population but this is a huge pest issue. Meaning everyone has this issue that has fruit trees. You will also be able to see what the moth looks like as well as the little worm on the computer. Another pest to apples is the Apple Maggot, a fly. You can Google that as well.
You can take a piece of corrugated cardboard and wrap around the tree trunks - adhere with tape, with the corrugated side 'in'. The larva will crawl down from the apples and make cocoons in the cardboard, change it out every 3-4 weeks depending on cocoons, bag it and tie it off and throw it away. You can also wrap packing tape around the tree trunk below the cardboard and cover the tape with tanglefoot (in stores almost everywhere), the larva will not be able to get to the ground or if they try, they will get caught in the tape.
I am putting in some links on organic traps that work. I use them, and they are used by OSU Entomologists in their research.
There is a lot of damage to the interior of the apple so I cannot ID it, the outside looks like a Gravenstein, which is very popular here. I am in the Lebanon area near the South Santiam and our Gravenstein(s) one red, one like yours (if indeed it is a Gravenstein) matures early, starting mid July and is really overly ripe by mid-August. Apple trees grow very well in the Willamette Valley, you should keep it trimmed to about 12-15 feet.
And, as a caveat, apples are notoriously hard to ID. If you can contact the former owner, that would be the best, otherwise you can contact Home Orchard Society next year with apples to look at, a group in Portland that specialize in apple ID. Ripe Gravensteins are delicious, sweet, tart, juicy, good for eating off the tree to baking and everything in between.
When you hire a pruner, make sure they have cleaned their tools with a 10% bleach solution before pruning, their tools can bring other diseases to your trees if not cleaned. Dip the tools for a few minutes, then use.
Doing all this, you may still have a problem because of other apple trees in the neighborhood. After the fruit has set you can again spray with either spray (alternate for best results) if you see problems. This keeps the pests down and will kill fungus spores. Dormant oil in the winter smothers eggs on the trees.
Your apples are small because no one thinned out the apples when they were small. When they are about 1 inch in diamter thin to one every 5-6 inches on the limbs. Seems like a lot but it helps the ones left to grow nicely. Also, the apple is ripe when you can lift it gently and it breaks away from the tree. Not all apples on the same tree ripen at the same time.
The whole apple in your hand with the blackish/brownish splotches looks like apple scab. This is a fungus and the two sprays will help keep it down. I was going to provide a link for the molasses mix, but seems to have disappeared. Mix 1.2 cup molasses in a 1 gallon milk jug with a teaspoon of yeast and a cup of water. Cut the neck off the top and punch a hole on either side, put a piece of wire or twine on either side and knot forming a handle. Hang in the apple tree starting end of April. Not too wide to fill up with rain, maybe under a limb with lots of leaves (after the blossoms are gone and the bees are gone.
I would also like to invite you to a Mason Bee workshop - free October 26th or 29th - www.extension.oregonstate.edu/linn/beevent - you can read more about it and sign up there. Mason bees are better pollinators than honey bees, they do not have hives and they generally do not sting, very gentle. Hope this info helps you out, always write back with more questions.
You can take a piece of corrugated cardboard and wrap around the tree trunks - adhere with tape, with the corrugated side 'in'. The larva will crawl down from the apples and make cocoons in the cardboard, change it out every 3-4 weeks depending on cocoons, bag it and tie it off and throw it away. You can also wrap packing tape around the tree trunk below the cardboard and cover the tape with tanglefoot (in stores almost everywhere), the larva will not be able to get to the ground or if they try, they will get caught in the tape.
I am putting in some links on organic traps that work. I use them, and they are used by OSU Entomologists in their research.
There is a lot of damage to the interior of the apple so I cannot ID it, the outside looks like a Gravenstein, which is very popular here. I am in the Lebanon area near the South Santiam and our Gravenstein(s) one red, one like yours (if indeed it is a Gravenstein) matures early, starting mid July and is really overly ripe by mid-August. Apple trees grow very well in the Willamette Valley, you should keep it trimmed to about 12-15 feet.
And, as a caveat, apples are notoriously hard to ID. If you can contact the former owner, that would be the best, otherwise you can contact Home Orchard Society next year with apples to look at, a group in Portland that specialize in apple ID. Ripe Gravensteins are delicious, sweet, tart, juicy, good for eating off the tree to baking and everything in between.
When you hire a pruner, make sure they have cleaned their tools with a 10% bleach solution before pruning, their tools can bring other diseases to your trees if not cleaned. Dip the tools for a few minutes, then use.
Doing all this, you may still have a problem because of other apple trees in the neighborhood. After the fruit has set you can again spray with either spray (alternate for best results) if you see problems. This keeps the pests down and will kill fungus spores. Dormant oil in the winter smothers eggs on the trees.
Your apples are small because no one thinned out the apples when they were small. When they are about 1 inch in diamter thin to one every 5-6 inches on the limbs. Seems like a lot but it helps the ones left to grow nicely. Also, the apple is ripe when you can lift it gently and it breaks away from the tree. Not all apples on the same tree ripen at the same time.
The whole apple in your hand with the blackish/brownish splotches looks like apple scab. This is a fungus and the two sprays will help keep it down. I was going to provide a link for the molasses mix, but seems to have disappeared. Mix 1.2 cup molasses in a 1 gallon milk jug with a teaspoon of yeast and a cup of water. Cut the neck off the top and punch a hole on either side, put a piece of wire or twine on either side and knot forming a handle. Hang in the apple tree starting end of April. Not too wide to fill up with rain, maybe under a limb with lots of leaves (after the blossoms are gone and the bees are gone.
I would also like to invite you to a Mason Bee workshop - free October 26th or 29th - www.extension.oregonstate.edu/linn/beevent - you can read more about it and sign up there. Mason bees are better pollinators than honey bees, they do not have hives and they generally do not sting, very gentle. Hope this info helps you out, always write back with more questions.
Hi, Just read my molasses instructions - that is one half cup of molasses.
Thank you so much! Wow that's a lot of good information. When should I hang the molasses mix and for how long? I'll get started on all this right away. And to clarify--spray once a month year round alternating sprays except don't spray at all then the trees are blooming? Thanks again for all your help.
The larva start emerging sometime in April-May. I use Extension to let me know. I am in Linn County so I use their extension site - listed at the bottom. You can leave the molasses in place until it is full of bugs, then dump and put more solution in. April/May is the usual time the lures go out. If you see dead bees in the solution, you are too early, so take it away.
You may catch some late Codling Moth larva with the corrugated cardboard even now. Be sure to use the tanglefoot around the tree.
. Also, you can use another gallon jug for fruit flies, punch small holes, big enough for a small fly to go through and fill 1/4 full with apple cider vinegar. Hang from the tree.If any of your neighbors have berries, ggrapes, plums, etc. that will keep them away from them and your backyard.
I don't spray monthly because the sprays will disturb the microbial action on the trees. I spray in October, November and sometimes December but always in late January or early February before the flower buds appear and then wait as you said until after all petals/bees have left. IF you see mold, scab or something of that nature or if you have a lot of 'frass' (insect poop) coming out of the bottom of your apples, then spray wwith Neem. Also, feel free to write back and ask questions.
You may catch some late Codling Moth larva with the corrugated cardboard even now. Be sure to use the tanglefoot around the tree.
. Also, you can use another gallon jug for fruit flies, punch small holes, big enough for a small fly to go through and fill 1/4 full with apple cider vinegar. Hang from the tree.If any of your neighbors have berries, ggrapes, plums, etc. that will keep them away from them and your backyard.
I don't spray monthly because the sprays will disturb the microbial action on the trees. I spray in October, November and sometimes December but always in late January or early February before the flower buds appear and then wait as you said until after all petals/bees have left. IF you see mold, scab or something of that nature or if you have a lot of 'frass' (insect poop) coming out of the bottom of your apples, then spray wwith Neem. Also, feel free to write back and ask questions.
