I bought, ordered and planted two Lil'Big (dwarf) Gurney's Goldrush apple trees just this late winter and both are bearing apples- one tree has three and the other eight! This variety is insane! I never expected apples my first year. I setup a trellis to espalier them this weekend by sinking a couple 8ft 4x4 posts on both sides and stringing a taunt wire for them to be 'willed' to grow on. I have two semi dwarf trees (Fuji and McIntosh) that are bearing finally after 6 years (one tree has 12, the other around 40) and both trees are like 15ft-18ft tall. Seems reading the advice from the experts here, I need to get on a step ladder and cut the leading branches off the top (and now is ok to do it, right?). Mine are in an interesting predicament in that they are technically too large for my tiny yard and had a fence right up against them for the last 6 years and then a month ago a new neighbor wanted to build a fence on his line which necessitated that I move my fence to the other side of the trees opening up the side that was previously shading them in the afternoon (otherwise my trees would have been boxed in on both sides). So now the morning sun is blocked by the fence from the east on the lower half of each tree but from noon on they get sun overhead and then on the west side. Like you I was thinking I need my apples up higher because of this fence-shading which is why I allowed the trees to continue their upward exploitation. The apples that have formed are up high on the Fuji, but low on the McIntosh which doesn't make sense to me, but I am just happy I beat the previously yearly records of exactly one or zero apples per tree per year. I put blooming and rooting fertilizer out in February and saw the most blossoms ever. It certainly helped.

Thanks everyone! The pots I got from Stein Garden & Gifts, which is a local garden center and plant shop. They have a good selection of pots, that's ever changing. The center and right pots were ones without drain holes, so I drilled them in. The left pot was one with the built on saucer, which doesn't work well for watering, so I tapped the saucer with a hammer and broke it off. I am a real stickler for pots.....I like them to have personality just like my plants. I don't use standard terra cotta pots or plastic pots. I have quite a collection of pots in my shed, of many sizes, so I'm always prepared. As for the mix, watering depends on the plant, and the time of year. I have a few more jades than shown, all around the same pot size, some a bit larger. Throughout winter, I watered maybe every week and a half to two weeks. In summer, maybe every few days. I like to maintain the pot sizes shown, for aesthetics, and for ease of watering. I basically have one drain hole in each pot, which I cover with a finger, and then fill the pot with water. I wait a minute to make sure the turface soaked it up, then release my finger, draining the pot. The turface is screened per Al's gritty mix instructions. I use Dyna Gro Foliage Pro 9-3-6, at roughly 1/2 tsp per gallon pretty much year round. My jades are in a south window, so they tend to grow year round also. Joe This post was edited by Joe1980 on Thu, May 22, 14 at 18:41

Shawnee (love that name! The Shawnee were in my area of Ohio.) - Can I suggest that you start a thread about your plant? Include a picture of your plant, tell us what your growing zone is and where you are located (not your address, of course! But Florida or California or Israel or Canada.) That will give us a better chance to give you good advice for your specific plant. Ask as many questions as you want! You will have all of your answers on one thread that you can bookmark for future reference. Good luck! I look forward to seeing your plant.

hi guys n girls well im in scotland ( glasgow) and have a jade that is around 15 years old its 2" to 3" at the base and stands about 1 foot tall ( the chineese use these as hierlooms as they can pass through many generations you can hold a plant that was grown and alive when grand or great grand parents cared for ) any way on the old lopping of bits i choped a 1" thick branch from my mother about 2 years ago and its almost the same sizeabout . i water around 2 a month to 3 times in summer and may be once a month wintter. iv never heard of black out flowering ie keep it dark for 24 hours like in a cellar like can be used to force some crops to flower early such as totties. i also repot once a year ( was told to size up in minimal scales by a chineese guy that had a 4 foot tree in his shop the trunk was around 6 to 7 : thick fantastic tree. he also suggested cracking in an egg straight to the top soil an letting the protein help the plant ( never done this ) he said let it root bound its self and the repot tightly as for the main point chop away iv rooted the leaves straight into soil to form a wild shrub type bush more leave that branches ( kinda like an easter or christmas cacti) but finnaly they grow any were if not pampred to much remember there native area ( the far east ) has very temperate climates no were near like the sunny la and california coasts never had a flower although my easter an xmass cati flower 2 3 times a year peace people