The weather was so nice (how unusual) that we started pruning apples already. time to start...pruning ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden ) Branches..EVERYWHERE. pruning...WHERE to start? ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden ) Kevin Thinks WHERE do we start. I say, easy, go get the chainsaw... pruning apple trees 1/6/12 ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden ) With a few pulls of the cord and a few large branches cut off....things are shaping up some. pruned ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden ) All picked up. the SMUSHY, disgusting, previously frozen, icky apples and all the branches..gone to the wheel loaders bucket and dumped on the do not reuse pile.
Wow, you sure get into pruning! Spring has started here, too. I have seeds starting in the guest bedroom "greenhouse" set-up, and spent yesterday afternoon cutting back perennials before they start their springtime growth. It's raining today, so no outside work. I suppose I could get a head start on spring cleaning the house. Or not.
That looks like a major undertaking! But I bet the apples are worth it. Jane, we're thinking alike. I set up an area in the computer room for starting some seeds. I was so tempted to do some stuff in the garden yesterday, but I know there's some more freezing temps on the way.
This is a major project for me. This is only two of the trees that are done ( only put up one photo of the finished trees). Some of the smaller trees don't require much pruning yet, so they go pretty fast. All the apples under the trees this year is not a normal occurrence for us, but the weather this year was incredibly wet. Many of the apples had fungal problems since we couldn't keep a regular spray schedule. So we let them drop and are just cleaning them up. Two of the trees we completely cut down. That will save 1/2 day for each tree, for pruning. I have my geranium started for hanging baskets and pansies are also up. Not quit ready for transplanting though. Ivy geraniums are germinated. ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden ) pansies germinated ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden )
Great posting, Carolyn. It is almost time for me to prune...but not while this continuing wet weather persists. You have done some great work and those seedlings really gives me a spring feeling. Yup--really good posting.
Thanks... it seems so long since we have been doing any gardening that this is exciting. We have been so behind or struggling for an entire year to get anything done outside. I am just glad to be able get out there and do something without the rain or freezing rain or snow. I came in to get a drink and now I need to get back out to shovel up the apples from the Rome tree (which was on we took the chainsaw to and will become firewood pretty soon) I think I have shoveled up at least 6 bushels so far and am about 2/3 done. then its on to more pruning. dropped apples from the Rome tree, ( photo / image / picture from carolyn keiper's Garden ) Now they are all picked up from the Rome tree and the jonagold...what a waste of food. too bad they weren't nicer or had some flavor.We decided to cut down this tree since it is sooo late in getting ripe. There aren't any people stopping in November for apples here. They don't have any flavor, either. Even the deer haven't been out there eating them from the ground. must be as bad to them as they are to me.
Well C--I had to rub my eyes when I looked at all those apples. Yes, it's a pity no one can eat them. Do birds pick at them? Your weather looks pretty good there at the moment, I hope that it holds out and that you can finish your work there. Happy gathering! ;-)
Hiya S, I don't notice the birds eating at them, but I do notice the Yel. Del. apples are gnawed at by the rodents. We put new doors on the shed and a mouse chewed through the floor to get back out (I guess) and that's where the I notice the the feasting going on, but no more now, I picked them all up. I don't even see any evidence of the deer eating the Rome apples. They really have no taste. They rank right up there with red del. apples. So I am thinking that if the deer aren't even tempted to graze on them, why waste the time to grow them to let go to waste?
That sounds like a sound plan to me, C. Did you say that you were planning to plant some other sorts of apple trees to take their place?
hey S, I didn't have plans to replace these trees....but Kevin is drooling over the new fruit tree catalogs. So I guess I am going to be digging a few more holes. Not sure what he wants though, other than another Gala, for sure though. Anything that tastes good and is ready in Aug or Sept. is a doer for me. Otherwise I can't use that many apples. I take them to the farmers markets if they are ready early enough.
Gala---hmmmm: well the Gala is a very good tasting apple, in my view. In fact it is the only apple that I buy. I had never heard of it until a number of years ago when I was travelling in New Zeeland. I had stopped in Lake Taupo and was staying in a small accommodation. The owners and I became friendly after a couple of days and one evening a knock came on the door of the small room and it was the owner. He asked if I liked apples and I said yes, generally. He said, "Wait a moment, I have something for you". He came back with two huge shopping bags full of Gala Apples. I don't know how many there were, but it was more than I could carry with two arms. He told me that a friend of his was a truck driver and was transporting a truckload of apples that had some sort of imperfection and could not be sold to the supermarkets. I guess they were being taken to some place to be juiced or sauced, I don't know. I'll tell you that when I bit into that first Gala it was an experience that i will not soon forget. The crunchyness, and juiciness were only overshadowed by the flavour. I was sold. I took as many as I could tote and then stuffed into my backpack. I still had to leave some behind when I finally left that place. Once back home here,I have found Gala's in the supermarkets from different countries but only only occasionally imported from New Zeeland. I have often considered getting a tree, but them my soil would probably be different than the soil of that original Gala in Kiwiland. I am still considering it actually--if one of the plum trees should die, it will be a shoo-in. Good luck with your Gala adventure. Your man has good taste, in every sense of the word. ;-)
We already have one gala in the garden. It produced maybe a bushel of apples this past year. The advantage for us is it's early ripening. Mid August for us. Easy sell at the market after we have eaten our fill. They do make nice sauce, too. Put one in somewhere if you can squeeze it, or mind all the spraying they take to get a decent crop, but don't put in a dwarf one unless you plan to stake it. They don't have very good root systems for keeping the tree upright in heavy wind or bad weather. All of ours are semi-dwarf, just so we don't have to stake them.
Thanks for that info. I certainly will do more research when and if the time draws near that I would get a tree. I am not entirely sure that I don't want a couple of Kordia cherry trees. The only thing with those is all the care they need....but my, oh my--what a flavour they have.
