North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Lon J. Rombough" <lonrom@hevanet.com>]

Some years ago I did an experiment on a neglected apple tree in which I took off all the unwanted growth at one time.  This was NOT topping, just returning the tree to it's original framework at one shot, rather than doing it over several years, the way some sources say to do.  To counterbalance the pruning, I took a straight edged spade and cut the roots.  At a point halfway out from the trunk to the drip line, I pushed the spade into the soil to the top of the blade.  This was done until there was a continuous circle all around the tree.    That season, the new growth came out at a rate like that of a tree that had been continuously pruned instead of going all to giant watersprouts.   I had pruned just enough roots off to balance the excessive pruning I'd done.
Would this work every time?  I would avoid it on weak rooted trees, such as apples on M9 stock, and I'd be sure to fertilize and water the tree well to make up for the loss of roots, but with care it should be a way to get a tree into shape WITHOUT the sort of "pollarding" that too many pruners do.
-Lon Rombough
Grapes, writing, consulting, my book, The Grape Grower, at http://www.bunchgrapes.com  Winner of the Garden Writers Association "Best Talent in Writing" award for 2003.
On Jun 30, 2005, at 11:45 AM, kieran or donna wrote:

> Is it possible to top apple trees without the upright branches producing so
many water-spouts?