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Fruit & Orchards

apple blossoms falling off

15 years ago

I planted 3 different apple trees in Nov (30-feet apart). They bloomed, the bees pollinated and little apple buds formed. But now these one-inch stems with apple buds are drying up and falling off all three of the trees. Is this what apple trees are supposed to do? Worried!

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Comments (5)

Konrad___far_north
15 years ago
This looks like transplant stress and aborting fruit set.
Normally you wait a couple of years for fruit set.

Konrad
zach3
Original Author
15 years ago
The trees are 5 - 7 feet tall, about 2-yrs old and have several limbs. The company (Fast Growing Trees) advertise that their trees should give fruit the first year. Is that not true, generally?
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blossoms on apple trees withering and falling off before opening
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Strange problem, very strange. If they are already leafing out, you must have had adequate chilling. But even with inadequate chilling they would just be late to leaf and bloom, not the problem you describe. I've grown apples in Texas and CA for 35yrs and have never seen or heard of such a problem. Please don't take offence, but the thought crosses my mind, are you sure they are apples? Even frozen apple blossoms make some effort to bloom, they don't just wither and fall off this early. And apple blossoms are pretty well attached. They don't fall off at the first sign of trouble. It won't be lack of water if the trees are healthy and leafing out. Sorry, but you have me stumped. The Fruitnut
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They are probably male flowers. As far as i know the male flowers come out first fall off and then the female flowers will show up. The female flowers will have a little tiny fruit underneath the flower and wont fall off. Here is a quick way to see male from female. Here is a link that might be useful: Squash Blossoms falling off vine.
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Yes, it is the heat. Failure of the pollen to work on some level due to temp is, I believe, the technical reason. Some varieties are just more susceptible to heat stress than others. It's a genetic thing. I guess all you really can do, short of build and air-conditioned structure around them, is keep them going and hope that the heat breaks and they bear a crop for you when it does.
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Yeah, I see now they were all male blossoms, so I guess they would have fallen off anyway, so I got a bit worried for nothing. And, there are still plenty of other male blossoms still flowering. For a hobby that's supposed to be relaxing, gardening sure can make you anxious sometimes!
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someguyinmaine
15 years ago
I've transplanted mature fruit-bearing apple trees many times, and I've hardly ever seen one bear fruit within a year after transplant. The only exception was with a mature Lodi which bore only 1 apple the first year after transplant, and that single apple was quite deformed. What I've noticed about apples, is if their roots are disturbed at all, they generally won't bear for a year.

If pollination is okay, I'm sure you'll get fruit next year.

Good luck.
zach3
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks. That's very comforting!
jellyman
15 years ago
This "Fast Growing Trees" outfit, which sells $30 trees for $120, sounds a little like a new incarnation of one of those Georgia outfits like TyTy or Willis. Heaven forbid.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

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