Thinning apples for a better crop

Many apples varieties will set more fruitlets than can usefully come to maturity. Some varieties, such as Sunset (seen here) Spartan and Winter King (Winston) do this regularly. Thinning, by removal of surplus fruit, is necessary to get a crop of decent sized apples. If a tree needs thinning but does not get it, it will become exhausted since the pips take up more energy and protein than the flesh of the apple, so it 'costs' the tree more to produce 200 apple weighting 15kg than hte same 15kg from say 80 fruits. Larger fruits also store and sell better. Overcropping with vast numbers of small fruits may lead to no crop at all the next year (biennial cropping).

Stephen Hayes of Fruitwise Heritage Apples thins a branch of Sunset apple on 1st June 2008 reducing the number of apples from 40 to about 18.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• fruitwise
• apple
• orchard
• thinning

[79Testo]

Time consuming to be able to go through an entire orchard thinning apples like this. The labour cost would be a killer.

[stephenhayesuk]

@79Testo you're right. comercially they use chemical or mechanical thinning and avoid apple varieties (like Winter King) that need a lot of thinning. I have a sedentary job and enjoy the exercie outdoors.

[telemarker77]

nice job. do you like the gala? my favorite apple. takes forever it seems like to fruit from bare root-six years. nice compact tree that dwarfs well on semi rootstock, blight and disease resistant, heavy bearer. long storage. what varieties have you found that produce fruit after 3 years? golden dorset and anna have been quick fruit producers for me and chehalis. fuji takes a long time in california.

God Bless

[stephenhayesuk]

Thanks. I don't grow Gala, its popular here in England but my primary mission is to grow rare and hard to find varieties, some of which are threatened with extinction.

Most apples will start to crop from the third year, but realistically its 5 or 6 years before you can expect a good crop. Modern orchards use high densities of small trees and support them with post and wire systems, they start cropping within 2 years, but this is a ot more effort and requires more precise management.

[agrotis79]

Is this Sunset on MM106?

Any fire blight issues ever?

[stephenhayesuk]

yes nearly all my apple trees are on MM106 including these Sunset. I've never had fireblight.

[SANTRECE13]

Outstanding pointers!  Very informative and detailed!

[mycomama]

Very nice videos Stephen!They really helped me a lot.I am looking to put in a few more , any older varieties you would recommend for a beginner? I like firm, crisp, slightly tart, apples.

[chuckie000111]

great video thanks  so so much for the info god bless , now i can start eating proper and more apples , they need to teach us this at school instead of junk food

[onceuponatube]

Thanks for all your info and efforts in your infomative video,

Chris from Chicago