Author Topic: Apples (Read 4200 times)

sabrina · « **on:** July 17, 2015, 12:28:59 pm »

Or should I say no apples, not one this year. Would it be the late cold Spring. The blossom was very late and we still have the odd flower just starting to open now. Tress look healthy enough.

DavidandCollette · « **Reply #1 on:** July 17, 2015, 12:57:47 pm »

Same here. Plenty of blossom but a late frost put paid to that

Sbom · « **Reply #2 on:** July 17, 2015, 12:59:48 pm »

Our trees were laden with blossom and now with apples

, hardly one last year though

Cosmore · « **Reply #3 on:** July 17, 2015, 01:09:27 pm »

Happy to say our trees laden despite cold spring, different from last year, only about 6 apples total! This year the 'June drop' is continuing into July, every day there are lots on the ground, never quite seen it like this before.
I wonder if the combination of frosts, cold spring and the lack of or ability to fly in the cold weather has stopped the pollinating insects from doing their job? I know that there is a general shortage of Bumble bees (that can fly at slightly colder temperatures than honeybees) and honeybee populations have declined seriously in some areas.

Louise Gaunt · « **Reply #4 on:** July 17, 2015, 01:46:32 pm »

We have a lot of apples on some trees, very few on others, all in the same part of the garden. No plums and no pears, not sure why, possibly weather related.

pgkevet · « **Reply #5 on:** July 17, 2015, 05:47:32 pm »

I have some 20-odd varieties of apple as 4th year espaliers and about half of those have good levels off fruit for their size. None on the pears or stone fruit though. Of the other apple trees in the original orchard the fruit levels are really low with soem trees almost bare. I was putting that down to some trees resting after last years bumper crops.....

Lesley Silvester · « **Reply #6 on:** July 18, 2015, 11:49:29 pm »

I have apples and pears. There are even several apples on my tiny Bramley that was planted last year. Not a plum in sight though.

Thyme · « **Reply #7 on:** July 19, 2015, 08:16:49 am »

I have lots of apples and lots of plums. The cherries are a loss again this year though

waterbuffalofarmer · « **Reply #8 on:** July 19, 2015, 09:25:36 am »

Quote from: Sbom on July 17, 2015, 12:59:48 pm

Our trees were laden with blossom and now with apples , hardly one last year though

same here. I seem to get a bumper crop every other year, weird

Dan · « **Reply #9 on:** July 19, 2015, 08:37:31 pm »

Our orchard is organised into 6 paddocks, planted in cropping order. One paddock is almost devoid of fruit.

My theory is that the earliest varieties were well-pollinated in April when we had great weather, and the barren paddock was in flower mostly during two really poor weeks we had in May - wet, colder and windy - and the pollinators just didn't get a chance to do their stuff properly.

These are young trees (4 years old) and I'm fairly certain it's not biennial cropping.

Greenerlife · « **Reply #10 on:** July 20, 2015, 09:19:32 am »

I have already filled two big bags with June/July drop from one Bramley in my garden. It is absolutely laden. Last year I had 6 apples, year before that about 400lbs. Weird. All my new(ish) apples plums and pear trees in my field have lots of fruit, although the plum that my other half butchered (he says pruned

) has not a single plum on it.