I have a small apple tree in the back yard and it produces fruit each year. Recently I noticed that some green plant are growing out from the bottom of the tree. Should I trim these plant out or keep them?
2007-09-12 11:21:43 · 7 answers · asked by MIU 2 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
Apple trees typically have a different variety of roots than the upper portion of the tree. The desired variety is grafted onto the roots of another type of tree that has certain desirable attributes (dwarf size, hardier roots, etc.) If there are branches coming up from near or below the ground, they are what we call suckers. They are coming up from the rootstock of the tree and will not have the same qualities as the tree. You should consider them like a tumor on the tree, as they will rob nutrients from the desirable part of the tree. And like a tumor, they should be eradicated.
2007-09-12 16:59:40 · answer #1 · answered by Karl 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Most apple trees and other fruit trees are grafted onto different rootstock for various reasons. They may keep the tree smaller or just may be stronger than the natural root. You never know what will grow directly out of it and you should cut it off. It drains energy from the tree.
I worked in an almond orchard and sometimes trees would be cut down and the roots left. There were many places in the orchard where we had peaches and plums growing from the rootstock.
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2007-09-12 11:29:45 · answer #2 · answered by Barkley Hound 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Those are suckers. Just cut them off at the base, since they won't do any good and takes all the good stuff(nutrients) from the main tree. Keeping these suckers means the roots of main tree have to feed them, too.
2007-09-13 09:29:23 · answer #3 · answered by Cosmos 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They are probably suckers. If you dig down and find where it connects to the tree root then you can separate it and provided it has plenty of root of its own then you can replant it and have a brand new tree. Whether you want to replant or not depends on you, but you do need to remove it because suckers steal energy from the host plant.
2007-09-12 11:26:30 · answer #4 · answered by Sptfyr 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Apple wood have not got a huge root cluster. you purely might desire to rigidity approximately particularly super wood like o.ok., or Elms, in the event that they're interior approximately 15 ft of the homestead, yet while they're that close then the threat is extra from falling than root injury. i might say pass forward and plant it!
2016-12-13 07:26:54 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Looks like an apple, or maybe a quince leaf? It's probably a sprout from the rootstock.
And yes, prune it off.
2007-09-12 13:50:24 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Cut it off, it's a sucker from the rootstock.
2007-09-12 11:29:14 · answer #7 · answered by Milepost 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋