none around here luckily.
2 Likes
Thanks for the info. The pellet concept is familiar to me. We use plain wood pellets for bedding calves. They are similar to what folks buy for burning in pellet stoves. They absorb so much water and swell considerably. Then it gets added to my compost piles after is has outlasted its use as bedding.
Anyway, that’s a very unique way to fertilize! 
1 Like
i use the pine needle pellets from TSC in my chicken coop . same concept and i like the smell of the pine.
1 Like
I haven’t seen pine pellets at our TSC. I would like that smell too!
its in with the horse feed. think its called stall pellets. dark green bag w/ white lettering. figured the pine oils might discourage parasites from establishing in there.
1 Like
I transplanted bench graft plums, which I had started in pots 1-2 months ago, and they all experienced transplant shock. The small leaves on the scions and growth from the root stock has all wilted ( the small scion leaves the most ) All buds were leafing. Is there good chance that new leafs will sprout in the place of the original leaves, or is it a better chance that they are doomed?
New tree planting question - I planted a bare root plum 4 days ago, which had just started to push leaves at the top. Below is a pic of the current state, and that white tape is around maybe 34". Given it started to leaf out prior to planting, should I top it to proper height now, or wait until the lower buds have leafed?
at the hight you top it, it will start forming branches, there your framework starts.
What tree shape do you want? And what rootstock is it on? How large can it get? Do you have dear problems? Do you need to mow below the tree? or will you mulch/plant perenials?
I would personaly go for an open center shape. And start side branches low if you need to pick without a ladder. Or start them somewhere around 6 feet if you have deer. I dunno much about deer though. so’d wait for some1 else to chip in if you have deer.
Is Rojo Brillante persimmon astringent or non astringent? There are conflicting reports on internet.
1 Like
Thanks - I have a long term plan for preventing deer coming into the area, (shrubs/fence) and want these to be pedestrian height. I am going for open center. It sounds like trimming around 24-28" may work? I think I read that 18-36" is typical, but am assuming the buds will produce limbs 4-6" below the cut?
Usualy the bud just below the cut will grow a shoot. And if the roots are strong enough a few buds below that will also form side branches.
Depending on what’s inportant to you you can start your side branches around 24-28"
Lower to the ground means it’s easier to keep it pedestrian hight.
However lower to the ground, especialy if you let plants grow might stay wet longer, wich encourages psudomonas (bacterial kanker)
I usualy want to start branches around 16" and then roughly every 4-6 inch. If you keep 4-5 branches and an open vase tree shape. you quickly go up in hight. Also considering your side branches are usualy not horizontal.
How many rain-free days do you need to help prevent a fresh pruning cut from becoming diseased?
I’d like to prune some of the more-severely diseased branches off now, and hopefully spur new growth with time for it to actually grow, rather than wait until summer ( when there may not be long stretches of rain-free days anyways )
What disease does the tree have now?
Anthracnose canker / bacterial canker
Apricot Question.
I bought a very small Moorpark Apricot tree not long ago. My first apricot experience. It was just a tiny whip - in a small gauze bag of soil. It’s doing well, but I don’t know how to train it. Open vase like most stone fruit? Wait till next winter, when dormant, to make first ‘cuts’?
Is it available to see a picture of the tree?
Cut it now
All 4 of them got the chop last weekend.
1 Like
nice, I thought that was hours and not days 
@Bradybb
This is it. 4’ high. It is right near my house and driveway - so I want to keep it rather small.
My husband brought it home. He saw little fruit trees for sale at the front of the Kroger grocery store nearby. He got this one - and a Spring Satin Pluot. The pluot is doing really really well! I have no idea what kind of rootstock it is on, etc. But, I doubt seriously that it is a dwarf.
It has some nice evenly spaced branching. Should I pick 3 or 4 of those - around the trunk and clip off everything else? I don’t think I’ve ever seen an apricot tree - so I have no clue! If nothing else - it should be pretty, right?
