Apple tree not flowering

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 jkarran 21 May 2018

I've an apple tree that flowered and produced prodigiously last year, this year it looks healthy but it hasn't flowered at all. It's only young, maybe 6-8yo at a guess, 30mm dia, 2m tall and I pruned it lightly over the winter. Is it normal to skip the odd year, is it telling me it needs something or just a consequence of the cold early spring?

My other one has only just produced a few meagre leaves in the last week or two but it's newly planted this year and has been pruned very hard to train it.

jk

 subtle 21 May 2018
In reply to jkarran:

deflowered  - snigger

 drdjpower 21 May 2018
In reply to jkarran:

Mine produces loads of fruit every two years. I think this is common. This year is one of its fruity years and, after a late start, it looks in fine fettle.

 Toerag 21 May 2018
In reply to jkarran:

I suspect it's because you pruned it hard, I think you're not supposed to prune everything at once but spread the pruning over 2-4 seasons. I have a good fruit tree book at home, I'll check what it says tonight. For what it's worth, my Golden Delicious tree has gone bonkers this year and I'm expecting a decent crop as a result - I suspect I'm going to have to thin them out.  What variety is yours?

Post edited at 15:26
 Rob Naylor 21 May 2018
In reply to jkarran:

Yes, it's perfectly normal. Both of ours crop hugely every 2 years, with very little fruit on alternate years.

Makes no difference how hard they're pruned. I pruned both of them ferociously in 2016, and last year's crop was massive. Hardly touched them this year, but there was almost no blossom. Our plum trees are the same, but with a slightly flatter "production curve".

 MG 21 May 2018
In reply to jkarran:

Yep, biennial cropping.  If you buy a second tree, sod's law says it will choose the same years for bumper crops!

 hang_about 21 May 2018
In reply to jkarran:

If you reduce the fruit by thinning in a bumper year then it should help avoid biennial cropping. Young trees often do this then crop most years as they become established.

 krikoman 21 May 2018
In reply to jkarran:

Don't know where you are but there was a late frost after ours had started (sprouting? I don't even like sprouts) and all the buds fell off ours.

 Philip 21 May 2018
In reply to Rob Naylor:

Common, but not normal. Biennial fruiting is not desired, the tree is stressed.

In reply to the OP, maybe you missed the blossom, or hit by late frost. A young tree shouldn't have needed that much pruning, what rootstock and what variety of apple?

 gethin_allen 22 May 2018
In reply to krikoman:

> Don't know where you are but there was a late frost after ours had started (sprouting? I don't even like sprouts) and all the buds fell off ours.

I was thinking this, pretty much everything in my garden suffered similarly and because I was away I couldn't move the pots or protect any plants from the frost so some have died back. The roses would normally be flowering but they are almost bare this year. 

On a positive note there are far fewer slugs this year.

OP jkarran 22 May 2018
In reply to Toerag:

> I suspect it's because you pruned it hard, I think you're not supposed to prune everything at once but spread the pruning over 2-4 seasons...  What variety is yours?

The one that hasn't flowered hasn't been pruned hard, just a gentle shaping and snipping off of the spindly growth. It produced an epic crop for its size last year, I had to support the branches with cane and string despite thinning the apples.

The newest one that has barely produced leaves yet has flowered, that one was brutally pruned to espalier it and it's root ball was disturbed while we were planting it so I'm not surprised it's not happy yet. I'm not too worried about that, it'll get going next year if it survives winter.

I can't remember the established one is Laxton's Superb I think, I can't remember what the new one is off the top of my head.

jk

 

OP jkarran 22 May 2018
In reply to krikoman:

> Don't know where you are but there was a late frost after ours had started (sprouting? I don't even like sprouts) and all the buds fell off ours.

Could be that but I saw no sign of flowers, I suspect it's just exhausted itself last year, sounds like that's a thing for young trees.

Thanks all.

jk

OP jkarran 22 May 2018
In reply to Philip:

I think it's Laxton's Superb, not sure of the rootstock but it is grafted and from a tree nursery with a good reputation locally so should be something dwarfy. It only had a light prune this year to reduce the spindlyness and remove twigs that were getting tangled.

I pruned a second bush very hard to train it into an espalier, predictably it's not enjoyed the experience but it'll hopefully recover.

jk

Post edited at 09:50

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