Dwarf Apple Trees In My Garden - Varieties And Cultivation Features. Photo

2023 Author: Ava Durham | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-27 07:13

Long gone are the days when the main and almost the only varieties of apple trees in our gardens were "White filling", "Antonovka" and even a couple of local reliable varieties. Today, thanks to the hard work of breeders, even in areas with the most inhospitable climate, nurseries offer a huge number of different varieties and types of apple trees. So, for example, I once opted for "dwarfs". Why, and what came of it, I will tell you in this article.

Content:

• Why did I buy dwarf apple trees?
• What varieties of dwarf apple trees do I grow
• Pros and cons of dwarf apple trees
• How to choose the right dwarf apple seedling?

Why did I buy dwarf apple trees?

Dwarf apple trees appeared in my garden by accident. It happened 6 years ago, when there was still no garden, but there was a bare area in the South Ural steppe. Blown by all winds, sometimes squally, with summer droughts and winter frosts down to -40 ° C.

In general, whoever has been on virgin soil at least once will understand that growing an apple tree in our area is not an easy task, but quite feasible, you just need to approach the matter responsibly. Which I did.

The sad experience of my parents helped, namely, every time my father bought seedlings from visiting sellers from unknown nurseries. These are such trucks, covered with an awning, usually stand on the roads or drive up to the markets. Their seedlings look very solid, the photos are beautiful and all varieties are described correctly, but …

No matter how much the father bought these same seedlings, nothing good has grown. Either they died in infancy, or, having waited for their fruits, we were disappointed. Then there were attempts to instill something worthwhile, but that's another story.

In short, I decided to go the other way and forbade myself even to look in the direction of these visiting guest performers. I found a local fruit nursery, which is located in the north of our region, which means that the climate there is even sadder than ours. In general, what you need.

And when I was already delighted and tuned in to purchase apple trees, it turned out that this nursery grows only dwarf and semi-dwarf apple trees, and pears too. I was not ready for this, or rather, I did not even think that apple trees could be like that. I read the literature and made an order.

What varieties of dwarf apple trees do I grow

In the first year I ordered and successfully received 4 dwarf apple trees - "Brother of the Chudny", "Mantet", "Kuibyshevskaya" and "Silver Hoof". I will not describe how I planted the seedlings - nothing unusual, the main thing is not to bury the graft. With them, everything worked out fine for me - 4-5 cm above the soil level. But with the distance between the trees, I got excited, planting them 5 meters from each other. It is not necessary that much, 3–3.5 m is enough.

All have taken root, grow and bear fruit, and the fruits that I bought give them. They are very tasty, so I'll tell you a little about each.

Variety "Brother Chudny"

"Brother Chudny" - an autumn apple tree of high winter hardiness - began to bear fruit in the third year after planting, but how! In the first year of fruiting, due to inexperience, we harvested 14 kg of apples. But it was not necessary!

What she looked like, poor thing - the branches bent to the ground, propped them up with spears, tied them to stakes, in general, it was impossible to look at the apple tree without tears. The harvest was ripe by mid-September. I put the apples in the lower drawer of the refrigerator, shifting the layers with paper, for experiment - how much can they be stored? They lay there until January. A little began to flabby by this time, and so - delicious, good apples.

But, apparently, our apple tree overdid it and took a vacation the next year. A year later, it began to bear fruit again, and this time I removed about a third of the ovaries, but, as it turned out, it was necessary to remove more. History repeated itself this year - again the branches were breaking under the weight of the fruit. Next year, I will probably rest again, and then I will leave one ovary per hand.

Variety "Mantet"

"Mantet" is a summer variety of average winter hardiness. A beautiful tree with a regular crown, now taller than 2.5 m. The first few apples appeared in the third year, a dozen - in the fourth. The apples are beautiful, juicy and very tasty. It adds the harvest very gradually, but in the 6th year, three buckets of simply excellent fruits were collected.

Surprisingly, this year they are much larger than they were before, and with what it is connected, I do not know. Maybe I liked the horse manure - I sprinkled it with all my heart since autumn, or the winter was mild and snowy, but the result is amazing!

Variety "Silver Hoof"

Silver Hoof is charm. Summer variety of high winter hardiness, in which everything is perfect - a neat beautiful tree and liquid small apples of ripe cherry color, with a thin skin and transparent pulp. Beginning to bear fruit in the second year, the harvest gradually increased, and this year we have already harvested three buckets of apples.

But here, on the contrary, there was a nuisance - almost all of the apples were cracked. The reason has not yet been found out - perhaps, overflow, although with our dry climate it is simply unrealistic to fill in something. Therefore, I sin on a sharp temperature drop. Most of the summer we had very cold nights and very hot during the day.

Variety "Kuibyshevskaya"

“Kuibyshevskaya” is a winter hardy variety, a test of my patience. Beginning to bear fruit in the 4th year, but only this year we took the first crop. Before that, she gave out 2-3 apples, which fell off long before the deadline.

In the description for the variety, it was written that the apples are very large, weighing up to 300 g, but we saw them only in the 6th year, and then - after a serious conversation. Last year I talked to her, described the prospects, she, apparently, listened. In short, the apples are really huge, with a strong aroma and good taste for winter apples. I sent it for storage, let's see how long they will lie.

So, all four of my apple trees grow and develop according to their age. No diseases were noticed on them, they winter well. In the early years, for the winter, I wrapped the trunks with spunbond, and mulched the trunk circle with dry grass. Now I don't do this anymore, I just lay out rags dipped in creolin from mice near the trunks.

Last year I enlarged my collection with two more apple trees - “Persianka” and “Sokovoe-3”, and two pears - “Chizhovskaya” and “Sverdlovchanka”. All have taken root, we are waiting for the harvest.

Pros and cons of dwarf apple trees

Low-growing apple trees have many advantages, which attract gardeners. But, as you know, there is nothing perfect in nature, therefore they also have some disadvantages.

Of the obvious advantages of the compact form of apple trees:

• It is convenient to look after a low-growing apple tree - pruning, treatment from diseases and pests is not difficult.
• Saving space - the diameter of the crown of an adult dwarf rarely exceeds 3 m, which allows them to be planted at shorter intervals than usual. Thanks to this, more apple trees of different varieties can be placed on the site, which is especially valuable for small areas.
• Dwarf apple trees tend to have high yields.
• Fruiting in dwarfs occurs in 3-4 years, which is earlier than in ordinary ones.
• Low-growing apple trees are distinguished by a thinner bark, which allows them to “round off” in time with the growing season at the first cold snaps and have time to prepare well for winter.
• The roots of dwarf apple trees are located close to the surface. They have to be watered more often, but much less water is required than for ordinary apple trees.
• You can also save on fertilizers here - all fertilizing quickly gets to the root system and is absorbed by the tree without loss.
• Low-growing apple trees have a short trunk, which means that nutrients do not need to go a long thorny path and the fruits quickly get everything they need. Hence the high yield and excellent fruit quality.

Apparently, early and abundant fruiting had a negative effect on the lifespan of dwarf apple trees. They live only 15-20 years. Perhaps this is a minus of undersized apple trees, but if you look from the other side, it is a great opportunity to update your garden more often and plant new varieties of apple trees.

The superficial arrangement of the roots can play a cruel joke with the dwarf apple tree. In a frosty winter with little snow, the roots can freeze, therefore, it is necessary to prepare for winter throughout the life of the tree - mulch the trunk circle with peat, leaves or spunbond.

Often "dwarfs" cannot cope with their own harvest on their own. Under the weight of the fruit, the branches bend, and often break. Therefore, experts advise to thin out the ovaries, and during the ripening of apples, put props under the branches or arrange trellises.

In my opinion, dwarf apple trees have more positive qualities than negative ones, but here it is a matter of taste, of course.

How to choose the right dwarf apple seedling?

Dwarf apple trees are often confused with columnar ones, but in vain - there is nothing in common between them, except perhaps the fruits. Dwarf ones have exactly the same appearance as ordinary apple trees, but in miniature. The growth of an adult "dwarf" usually does not exceed 2.5 m, a "half-dwarf" can reach up to 3 m.

In general, this is the most common apple tree, with the only difference that to obtain a seedling, a varietal cut is grafted onto a clonal dwarf or semi-dwarf stock.

Saplings of dwarf and semi-dwarf apple trees outwardly differ from ordinary ones, therefore, in order not to buy a fake, you need to know these features:

• the height of the trunk should be no more than 1.5 m;
• two-year-old seedlings should have several mature branches with large buds;
• near the root collar, the place of inoculation in the form of a protrusion should be different;
• the root system, unlike the pivotal one in ordinary apple trees, has branched fibrous roots.

Dear Readers! For those who doubt whether or not to buy dwarf apple trees, I can say one thing - of course, buy! But in the right place. Look for a local nursery, one that has a specific address, and where these seedlings are really grown, and not brought from somewhere, and then resold (there are also such). It is better to spend time looking for seedlings than to kill years growing the unknown.