--- On Sun, 2/27/11, Randy Steffens Jr <[email protected]> wrote:
From: Randy Steffens Jr <[email protected]> Subject: [apple-crop] Vertical Scaffold Spacing To: [email protected] Date: Sunday, February 27, 2011, 6:10 AM How much vertical distance do you generally employ to separate primary scaffold branches on semi-dwarf Apple trees trained to central leader? Various university publications don't agree on spacing. Cornell extension publication 112 (written 1972) says at least 8 inches vertically between each branch is necessary, and that less space can cause the central leader to loose dominance. But more recent publications from other universities such as Univ. of NC and Univ. of VA imply it's fine if they all emerge from practically the same level. Is the Cornell publication old advice, or is the spacing really not that big a deal? What are the spacings you use for common rootstocks like M106 or G11? Is there any compelling reason to move towards adopting Cornell's "textbook" approach in our orchards? Randy Steffens Jr Shepard's Valley OrchardsMIddle Tennessee -----Inline Attachment Follows----- _My experience, Spacing has to do with what you have to pay for land and how much you want to reduce labor,how important coloring is,, Wide planted trees are easier to prune,pick,good to color all around the tree,(lower cull rate),less transfer of fire blight and alot easier to get good spray coverage. As long as I have many unplanted acres left on my ground,I will space wide, I have Gala on B-9 and m-9 at 6 foot spacing, should have been 12 feet,Goldens on G11 at 8 feet, should have been 14.Some of my rows were 18 feet,just right, some were 14 feet,disaster, If you have reasonable priced land give yourself plenty of room.Quit thinking X number of bushels per acre,that;s a trap, think bushels per orchard. lee Elliott,, Winchester,IL apple-crop mailing list [email protected] http://virtualorchard.net/mailman/listinfo/apple-crop
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