wild apple find

[Ben.MN/WI]

While cutting buckthorns on Friday I found 2 nice wild apple or crabapple trees growing in my woods. We moved to our place 2 years ago, but apparently I've never walked through this small section. The apple trees are pretty tall (15-20 feet) since they've been reaching for the sun through oaks, elms and basswood. I cut down a couple of nearby oaks, cherry and basswood that were growing within 15 feet of the apples, but I wonder if I should cut down more this year or just stop for now and increase the open area more next year?

How would you guys handle a find like this?

 

[huthut]

Open up the area around them as much as you can and consider pruning them. I have a couple that I have found over the years and they really take off if you can get sunlight to them.

 

[bueller]

Very cool. I wish I would find an apple or two on my place but I'm afraid I'm stuck with being excited to find the occasional cedar seedling amongst the black oaks, and pines (white, red, and jack).

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I found a similar crabapple 2 years ago and I cut down several competing elms the first year and the second year I cut down the remaining trees nearby. I did it over 2 years because I thought it might be a good idea to transition the tree from mostly shade to full sun. I was also a little worried that the new reduction in competition might end up causing problems if a strong wind comes through and all the neighboring trees that formerly protected the apple were gone. Anyway, that plan seemed to have worked pretty well since the tree really responded with a huge crop of crabapples last fall. I think I'll follow a similar plan for these two trees and maybe I'll also take a soil test to see if the soil needs any assistance.

I'm up to about 10 wild apple and crabapple trees on my 40 acre place. Granted most of them are in far from ideal locations, but I look at them as some really nice bonus trees that give me a few options while my planted orchard is slowly growing.

I've also found some really nice wild plums and hawthorns that were starting to get shaded out in the woods that I've also opened up to sun. I've been pretty happy to find what was hiding behind hundreds of buckthorns.

 

[ruskbucks]

My friend found a wild apple at my place 2 years ago while driving down the road. He thought someone hung a ornament in the tree for a joke, it had 3 apples on it that year. The tree is about 15ft. I cleared the aspen and a cherry that were chocking it out. Last year it had about 20 strange apples on it. They were not round,but more flat,they looked a little like a UFO. The closest I can find is a dutches of Oldenberg. Last fall I found another one along the road. I have struggled to get my fruit trees going good. I wonder if someone didn't just throw there apple core out the window and they grew. I haven't any other hidden treasures on the rest of the land, just right along the road, the only place I didn't want any.

 

[chummer]

My friend found a wild apple at my place 2 years ago while driving down the road. He thought someone hung a ornament in the tree for a joke, it had 3 apples on it that year. The tree is about 15ft. I cleared the aspen and a cherry that were chocking it out. Last year it had about 20 strange apples on it. They were not round,but more flat,they looked a little like a UFO. The closest I can find is a dutches of Oldenberg. Last fall I found another one along the road. I have struggled to get my fruit trees going good. I wonder if someone didn't just throw there apple core out the window and they grew. I haven't any other hidden treasures on the rest of the land, just right along the road, the only place I didn't want any.

I have always wondered this. Most of the apples in my area are on the side of the road. Who put them there, why, and how. Most of the trees are older than any dwellings of which there are very few.

 

[SD51555]

That's an awesome find. I found one a few years back. When I found it, I wiped out all the competing ash that were crowding it. I think that was a year ago. This fall after dormancy, I went out and gave it a decent hair cut. Last year, just after clearing the competing brush, it went from peanut M&M apples that were rock hard to golf ball sized apples this last fall that were nice and mushy come november but still hanging.

I'm hoping my amateur pruning job gets it ahead again this year and produces a bumper. I'm contemplating using this tree for some Tbuds in august for my siberian seedlings I planted last spring. I've got a dozen to graft, so why not try 3?

 

[SD51555]

I had to dig into the Habitat Talk archives to find this pic of mine.

 

[gunther89]

I am truly blessed that on part of our 300 acre farm we have wild apple trees growing. Id say we have 20-30 wild apple trees that are producing apples every year. One of these years I will try and prune some of them but for the most part they always produce apples every year.

 

[greyphase]

Gunther

Your apple trees in blossom really make me anxious for spring to finally get here. :)

 

[gunther89]

The trees in the photos above haven't been touched. They are located in a old cow pasture. We have more that are competing for sunlight and my goal is to this year or next year cut the trees around them to give them more sunlight. I can remember when I was younger I would pick apples with my grandparents and they would make apple sauce and apple pies with them. Some good eating apples that's for sure :)