How many times and in what year after planting does an apple tree bear fruit?

Growing an apple tree is a lengthy process. But how eager we are to get the first fruits from a young tree as soon as possible. It turns out there is a way to speed up the harvest.

When does an apple tree begin to bear fruit after planting seedlings?

The exact time it takes for an apple tree to begin bearing fruit after planting depends directly on its variety, but typically, it doesn't reach this stage for at least five years. Growing a pome fruit tree is a fairly lengthy process, so fruit won't be produced in the first year.

Classic tall apple tree varieties delight with their first fruits in the 6th to 8th year.

How many years does an apple tree bear fruit?

Fruit yields increase with each passing year. After 40–50 years, the tree begins to exhaust its resources, ending its productive period. Each variety has its own unique fruiting curve. Therefore, before planting young trees in your garden, it's important to research the characteristics of your chosen variety. The average lifespan of apple trees varies greatly and can easily deviate.

In the southern regions of the country, the lifespan and fruiting of apple trees increases, which is directly related to milder climatic conditions. And in Siberia The debilitating cold and short summer quickly exhaust the crop's resources.

Fruiting periodicity

Regular active fruiting is constant dream every apple orchard owner, as some stone fruit varieties produce a limited number of fruit-bearing ovaries. A stable yield depends on proper crown formation, timely pruning, and regular, abundant feeding. glaze.

Experienced gardeners have learned to achieve annual fruiting even in cases where periodicity is initially determined by varietal characteristics.

The periodicity of fruiting is determined by the fact that each year of abundant harvest is necessarily followed by a period of rest and accumulation of nutrients for the next season. The tree expends energy in forming fruit flowers, which eventually transform into fragrant fruit, because:

• grows and develops;
• creates buds with ovaries;
• supplies nutrition to developing fetuses;
• creates a reserve of microelements for the winter period.

Moreover, nature itself sometimes creates unfavorable factors for the development and ripening of apples. These include:

1. Frosts that destroy leaf and fruit buds.
2. A rainy and cold summer replaces a winter with little snow.
3. Various varietal and species diseases.
4. Mass attacks of parasites.
5. Lack of nutrients.

Why do apple trees bear fruit every other year?

The most common reason for alternate-year fruiting is varietal traits. Some apple trees simply cannot produce fruit regularly simply because it's not their natural habit. Biennial fruiting is most common among profusely flowering varieties.

Improper pruning, which involves removing most of the fruit-bearing branches, can also lead to a missed harvest. This procedure certainly rejuvenates the tree, forcing it to develop new shoots. However, these shoots will inevitably begin to develop buds, and the tree will no longer bear fruit that year.

A less common cause of changes in fruit formation schedules can be insufficient light, which can result from improper tree planting. Various pests and diseases can also affect this process. They significantly reduce the viability of stone fruit crops, depriving them of the energy needed to set fruit buds.

Abundant fruiting the year before also becomes the reason why it is useless to expect fruit from the apple tree in the following summer season.

Can an apple tree bear fruit every year?

Apple trees are the main fruit tree in orchards, and increasing their yield is closely tied to overcoming the cyclical nature of fruiting. Certain agricultural practices can facilitate this process. However, there are apple varieties that produce fruit annually, regardless of the previous season's yield.

Which varieties bear fruit every year?

How to make an apple tree bear fruit every year

Traditionally, fruiting once every two years is essentially a simple biological phenomenon, based on the physical insufficiency of energy to establish fruit buds from one season to the next. After all, an apple tree expends 15 times more nutrients on flowering and fruit formation, or rather, seed formation, than on the creative processes of leaf growth and annual shoot growth. Therefore, to achieve an annual harvest, gardeners should focus on strengthening and correctly implementing certain agricultural practices.

These include:

1. Pruning an apple treeFruit trees can significantly reduce bud set due to low light levels caused by dense canopies or close planting. It's important to stimulate the development of young branches and shoots by pruning stunted skeletal parts. It's recommended to shorten them above the first well-developed lateral branch, which will encourage it to grow.
2. Top dressingRegular fruit bud formation largely depends on the amount of annual growth, as terminal shoots increase sap flow throughout the entire skeletal branch. But for this to happen, the tree requires adequate nutrition and abundant water. watering.

3. Crop rationingThis technique involves mechanically or chemically removing excess flowers and fruit buds. It is considered the most reliable method for encouraging apple trees to bear fruit annually. It is accomplished by thinning the crown and shortening the skeletal branches before the flowering period begins. Excess fruit buds should also be removed.

How to speed up the fruiting process

You can speed up the fruiting process with simple manipulations. There are two ways to speed up the fruiting process without harming the tree: chemical and physical. The first involves treating garden crops with fertilizers or solutions that accelerate fruiting. The second involves a series of actions designed to "outsmart" nature.

Bending branches

Bending apple tree branches is a completely safe way to speed up the growing season. The method involves increasing the angle of the branches, thereby accelerating growth and, in turn, promoting rapid fruit set. The process looks like this:

1. In the spring, select several thin branches that are strong enough not to break, but flexible enough to yield to the applied force.
2. A strong spacer is installed between the trunk and the branch, which will bend it in the direction opposite from the trunk.
3. A strong rope is tied to the branch, the other end of which is wrapped around the trunk closer to the ground.
4. In summer the spacer and rope are removed.

This method is only suitable for relatively young trees, as older ones cannot be bent without damaging the apple tree.

Pinching

Another excellent way to speed up fruiting is to pinch off the tops of the shoots when the seedlings reach 25 cm in height, leaving about three leaves attached to the trunk. This will force the apple tree to expend more energy on branch maturation, which will speed up the fruiting process.

This method is easy to implement, but its effect will only be noticeable 2 years after planting the apple tree.

Banding

This method for accelerating fruit set is suitable for both young and mature garden plants. It involves selecting several large, strong branches, wrapping a strong wire around their base, and twisting it into a rope. To prevent damage to the bark, place a soft cloth or rubber band under the wire. Leave the wire wrapped for two months and then remove it.

The tree's fruiting rate will increase several times, and the first abundant harvest will be obtained within a year.