I’ve been growing a pretty wide variety of dwarf, semi and standard rootstock at this point. The majority of dwarfs do not perform well here. I wonder why exactly that is. I imagine it’s because of my heavy clay soil.
Fixing this issue is probably not in the cards. I’d rather just know why this is the case to take steps to solve the issue in future dwarf plantings or to avoid dwarf stock completely.
To me it makes more sense to have standards and simply graft varieties onto that stock rather than planting a bunch of dwarfs. I’m sure the climate, soil and objectives are the main concern, but I just want to make sure it’s not crazy to think this way as a backyard grower at my location.
i also have heavy clay soil and it killed 2 5-6ft apple trees before i realized the roots weren’t going into the soil and they slowly died . try growing in a mound or raised beds with some compost and perlite mixed into your soil for drainage. ive planted several apple /mulberry trees this way and all are growing well but on standard rootstock. not a fan of dwarf/ semi dwarf here in the north. they just aren’t vigorous enough to handle our short cold growing season and just languish along never putting on much growth.
I agree. Dwarf pears have done well here, but dwarf apples are a waste of money. Large semi and standard have been the best for me. If you want them small just cut them small. In my opinion standard is better than dwarf in every way but quick flowering.