Apple Tree disease? Please Help

What ya got there is a hollow tree. Diesease? Perhaps a long time ago that caused the tree to become weakened and allowed insects and vertebrates to hollow out the center if that tree. There seems to be quite a bit of dead on that lower trunk.

Nothing you can do now to stop the hollowing out process. If you want to keep the tree, it could survive for a while in such a condition. You could also graft that variety onto another tree and cut this one down.

If it were mine and close to a building, id cut it. If it isnt close, perhaps enjoy it while you can and replace in a few years.

4 Likes

Does it do any good on a tree like that to try to open up the area to air and sunlight? I had a friend who had an old apple in that condition and we drilled holes (to improve drainage) and cut away dead, rotting wood but I never was sure if it helped or not. They ended up removing the tree not too long after that - not sure why.

That looks familiar - I just cut mine down.

1 Like

Thanks for the help, and much appreciated :slight_smile:
I just cut it. it looks quite soft in the middle. and I also realized it is quite big tree, quite dangerous if my kids play around it. :cry:

You should list your state and zone on your profile. It will be helpful for us to know if you have other questions about growing fruit.

If no threat to buildings or fences Iā€™d have let it grow if the apples on it were good ones.
(And grafted a backup somewhere if it were a rare variety.)

1 Like