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Gardening
This Here’s Apple Country
by Linda Ragland
The roadside apple houses throughout North Georgia seem to be overflowing with a bountiful crop of the most delicious and beautiful fruit this year. With so much to see and sample, wandering through the rustic apple barns and their retail stores is never a brief visit. What a joy it is to taste the different varieties of apples and take several bags home to share with friends and relatives. I wouldn’t think of visiting out of state this time of year without presenting a sack of apples as a “door-opener.”
Many jokes have been made about folks visiting Florida and boasting of their trips by returning with a bag of oranges in the back window. North Georgia has turned the tide, as we see lots of Floridians heading south with several bags of apples in their vehicles. The smell of a fresh apple is heavenly too. My great grandfather always kept an apple under the seat of his pick-up truck as an early air freshener. That sure beats the sickly sweet things we hang from the rear view mirror today.
While North Georgia apples are the best tasting apples we can buy these days, they don’t compare with sun-ripened apples grown on our own trees. The first thing I planted when I moved to the top of Fort Mountain was apple trees. I figured (while the delighted bears laughed hysterically) that I could plant enough for the bears and for me. I was able to bake one pie from the Granny Smith variety I planted. The next day the limbs were broken down and stripped of the remaining apples. The same thing happened with the pears, plums, and peaches. No one told me how many bears denned below my house, and the destruction to young fruit trees a hungry bear can wreak.
Growing up in the country, everyone had apple trees and breakfast just isn’t the same without stewed apples. I remember our apple trees were in a fenced-in chicken lot. You can bet that the apples were absolutely delicious. The chickens not only fertilized the trees but ate most of the pests. Of course that didn’t eliminate the occasional spitting discovery of half a fat worm. My friend, Becky, and I climbed up into the trees carrying big handled aluminum salt shakers as soon as the apples were big enough to bite. They were sour and bitter and caused some intestinal discomfort but we loved them. The salt shakers regularly made it up the trees until the apples ripened.
There are many reasons to grow apple trees—beautiful spring blossoms, healthy food supply, shade, erosion control, and wildlife habitat—no, not for bears, but as bird sanctuaries and nesting sites. The birds also help keep pests from the apples, and Cedar Waxwings and Grosbeaks love to eat the late remaining apples on trees.
Many books are written about growing your own fruit trees but here are the basics:
1. Select a site: This is always the most important step in planting just about anything, and especially trees. Apple trees will thrive and produce in sunny locations with enough room to spread their roots and branches. Make sure the mature tree will fit in the space it is to be planted in. A garden hose or string can be laid out to indicate the maximum space that will be needed in order to avoid having to remove a treasured tree when it gets too large. Allow about 30’ for a standard tree and 15’ for a dwarf. If power lines are an issue, keep in mind that the trees will grow from 6’ to 30’ high depending on the variety.
2. Soil preparation: It is strongly recommended that you get the soil tested by your county Extension Office. Ask them to test for nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, nematodes, micronutrients, and soil pH (6.8 pH is ideal). The report will come back with recommended amendments specifically for apple trees. Be careful to not add synthetic or fresh animal manure to the soil, as it will burn the roots; use only composted animal manure. Till or turn up a six by six foot space for each tree.
3. Tree selection: I would suggest researching trees that grow in the area and determine if the look and fruit are desirable. Go by the apple houses, sample the fruit and, if possible, look at the trees.
4. Planting the trees: Be sure to remove all tags and bands to prevent strangulation. In the center of the prepared area, dig a hole only as deep as the root ball or the bare roots and at least twice the width. Mound the dirt under the center of the bare root tree and spread the roots over the mound. Cover the roots with soil, occasionally ‘jiggling’ the tree a bit to settle the soil. A tree grafted on seedling rootstock will be planted with the graft just under the dirt. A dwarf grafted tree must be planted with the graft 2 or 3 inches above the dirt to prevent the original rootstock from sprouting. Cover root-balled trees two inches below the top with soil. Dig a ‘moat’ about a foot or so away from the tree to hold water for irrigation. Firm around the tree to eliminate large air pockets, and water well.
5. Whipping the tree: This seems brutal but will actually help the trees develop strong roots. Cut off the main trunk to about two feet, cutting just above a healthy, plump vegetative bud and then remove all of the side branches to ½” from the trunk. When the new branches begin to grow, it will be easier to train them in the desired shape. Wrap the trunk with a coiled plastic “mouse guard” to protect it for several years from damage and sun scald. Loosely stake the tree for a year if the site is windy.
There is much more than space allows to write about growing fruit trees. Hopefully this will get you started, and you (or the bears) can expect to enjoy your very own organic apples in about 3 to 8 years. Of course, if your green thumb fails you, you can always visit the local apple houses.
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