Many years ago, long before the Internet I tried to grow apples in Brisbane’s sub tropical climate with no success. The advent of the internet brought access to a mass of information about the work that had been done in growing apples in warm climates so I decided to have another go. Last year I planted a Granny Smith and a Royal Gala which are setting some fruit.
Both trees are on dwarfing root stock and were late to break dormancy… well into the second month of our summer before buds started to break. The GS was first and set three fruit whilst the RG was about a month behind but is setting quite a lot. Both trees look like some of trees in Uganda that have been posted here, sparse foliage, fruit setting at the ends of branches and flowers appearing over quite a long time. Both trees are in the central leader form with branches pulled horizontal.
I am interested to know about the crop size in sub tropical regions in comparison to those in temperate zones. Also will trees fill out in the same way as colder climate trees do and is an extended flowering period the norm for those in hotter climates.
Extended flowering is very much the norm in low chill areas. It’s in your future. And no the tree won’t fill in like a properly chilled tree. As far as yield the tree will set more fruit than it needs. Mine need lots of thinning so you can get the yield you want. If not thinned enough the tree can go biennial just like they can in high chill areas.
If you can live with the late flowering and sparse foliage you’ll likely do OK. My only objection to what’s sometimes written about apples in low chill areas is ignoring these differences like they aren’t happening. The trees aren’t happy but they do produce. You’ll have plenty of growing season in Brisbane and no freeze risk for winter ripening fruit. So the alterations in harvest dates may even be to your advantage at least with some varieties. Some varieties are better adapted than others, that’s key.
Thanks Fruitnut for your detailed reply. I see that you live in Texas so you no doubt have the experience of growing apples in warm climates and your advice is appreciated.
From your comments it seems as though they will set fruit almost throughout the year. That’s an interesting concept for me and one that is worthwhile attempting to exploit as it brings about the possibility of harvesting fruit year round. Are you able to do that in Texas? LI can live with the extended flowering and even with unhappy trees. Is there any pruning strategy that helps the tree cope with its conditions?
The Gala is setting fruit in clumps of up to 5 and I wonder if I should be taking some of these off when you talk about thinning. So far all the fruit is at the ends of the branches.
I’d thin those clusters to one fruit each. And then depending on the crop load you may need to thin even more. On mature trees I probably leave one apple for each 3 clusters like that. A young tree likely doesn’t have that flower density so one fruit per cluster might suffice.
Applenut may chime in here. He has a lot of experince dealing with these unruly trees. And has trialed many varieties in low chill conditions. You might google Kuffel Creek Orchard for his variety lists. Our Favorite Apple Varieties Apple Nursery
My chilling here is intermediate. The trees aren’t happy but bloom is limited to April thru June. In addition our winters alternate from -10C to +20 to 25C about every week. So not much chilling but we can’t carry apples much past Nov on account of the cold spells.
You’re doing a good job at keeping branches horizontal, they will form up spurs and your production will increase despite the blind wood.
Your trees will behave much differently than in a cold climate, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t grow them or that you won’t get good apples. You might want to find Lady Williams, a great hot climate apple that should be available to you.
Applenut, thanks for your comments. I am wondering when I should be pulling the top of the trees to horizontal . The Granny Smith has already done that by itself but the Gala wants to put more height on. All the trees are turning up at the end of the branches and I wonder if I should be trying to straighten them out.
I would love to put a Lady Williams in but with an Anna and a Tropical Sweet in addition to the GS and the RG I suppose there are only so many apples we can eat and the low chill trees are now flowering for the second time this season. Also my backyard is pretty full with 6 citrus 5 stone fruit and 6 grapes in the ground plus trees in pots using a lot of space .
No, let the tree keep going up, it will flop over with crop load on its own. You can try to straighten the branch tips out, but it may be too late.
People on this board would tell you to tear out all that silly grass and plant about 30 more fruit trees. For the apples, ignore the chilling hours and plant what you want.
Ha Ha! Nearly 50 years of marriage has taught me not to upset the little lady. She loves apples but the 4 apple trees I have in the ground plus the citrus plus the stone fruit plus the grapes plus plus plus has me thinking she might still want me around come the 50 years on Dec30 this year.
Not that I am frightened but you know how it is I am sure
Not having grown apples before these I am unsure what a “leafed out” Anna would look like so I have posted a pic showing the Anna on the right and the Tropical Sweet on the left. Both are on dwarfing rootstock, been in the ground for about two + years and about 5’ high.
@Slicko your trees look really nice…how much supplemental water do you need to give them? The ground looks really dry there…quite the opposite of what we have here in Florida.
@applebacon and @jeremymillrood thanks so much for your comments. I live a long way from the main apple growing districts here in Australia so I know very little about their growing conditions and how their trees are reacting. However the constant need for water in the main fruit growing areas is regularly on the news.
For the past few years I have been supplementing water to all my trees on a weekly basis. The ground looks dry because it is even though both trees had about 20 litres the day before. I usually clear the ground around the trees to minimise competition for water and mulch heavily. That’s a work in progress with those two trees, the cleared area needs to be enlarged and the whole space mulched. We seem to have had our storm season and we’re waiting for our cyclone season for more rain.
I hope that answers your questions. Cheers
I have only ever used water saving crystals on house plants in hanging baskets.
Frankly I have never thought of using them on my trees. Shall have to investigate!
Lots of guys i know if they grow their grafts out for a year in a nursery, the ones they will transplant they put water in a bucket and dump in a bunch of those crystals, they expand and become pliable. They then dip the trees into that water before transplant and lots of those crystals get tangled in the roots.
