7 - 



On limited acreage, the "layer spindle" tree form became popu- 

 lar. Each tree has 2 permanent limbs trained in opposite directions 

 in the tree row (Fig. 3). The branches originating from these 

 limbs are tied to 3 wires supported by yokes nailed to every other 

 post in the tree row. Fruiting wood on the central leader is kept 

 very short and of limited amount. Thus, fruit are produced mainly 

 in the horizontal canopy of branches. 



Trends in the 1960 's 



M.9 continued to increase 

 in popularity and by 1968 

 (Table 1), 82% of the trees 

 grown by the Dutch nurserymen 

 were on this rootstock. Actu- 

 ally, the figures in Table 1 

 are somewhat misleading because 

 many of the trees on semi-dwarf 

 rootstocks were exported and 

 the Dutch imported some M.9's 

 from Belgium and France. 



Apple growing became less 

 profitable in the 1960's due 

 to rising labor costs which 

 doubled between 1962 and 1967 

 and reduced prices due to the 

 EEC's oversupply of apples. 

 To help avoid the price/cost 

 squeeze, it became increasingly 

 necessary to obtain higher pro- 

 duction per acre and per man- 

 hour. This was accomplished 

 by adoption of the slender- 

 hod of training trees which permitted further intensi- 

 In this system, the tree has a permanent whorl of 4 or 

 in its lower half (Fig- 4). The lowest limb is 28 inches 

 ound and the leader on older trees is about 7-1/2 feet 

 Ider bearing tree, in a well-pruned orchard, will have a 



Fig. Z. An 8 

 apple tree on 

 spindle tree. 



spindle met 

 f ication. 

 5 branches 

 from the gr 

 high. An o 



-year-old 'Golden Delicious' 

 M. 9 trained as a layer- 



Table 1 



The tr 

 nurser 

 gated 



end in number of apple trees grown by the Dutch 

 ymen and the rootstocks on which they were propa- 



