Establishment and Managennent of Compact Apple Trees 



William J. Lord and Joseph Costante 

 University of Massachusetts 



Part 4 



Limb Positioning 



Method of limb positioning. Limbs can be positioned 

 mechanically using spreaders or tie downs. Cultivars like 

 Delicious, Paulared and Macoun require limb positioning 

 more than Mcintosh and Cortland (Fig. 22). 



Types of spreaders. A wide variety of spreaders are used: 

 spring-type clothespins, toothpicks, sharpened stiff wires or 

 welding rods, notched laths, or wooden sticks with a sharp- 

 ened nail In each end. 



Spring-type clothespins or toothpicks are used on suc- 

 culent shoots. Clothespins are preferred because they can 

 be applied more quickly than toothpicks which need to be 

 sharpened and can be blown off the tree. 



Wire or wooden spreaders are preferred on 1 -year-old 

 wood and older. Wire spreaders are generally no more than 

 10 to 12 Inches long, otherwise they may bend under pres- 

 sure. These can be purchased or made from 8-gage wire and 

 cut to various lengths. When making the wire spreaders, cut 

 them at a sharp angle with the point on each end on the 

 same side of the spreader. Spray painting the spreaders will 

 make them easier to find if dropped during placement or If 

 dislodged after placement. 



. Softwood sticks 3/4 x 3/4 inche or 1 by 1 inch and cut 



at various lengths are suggested for larger, stiffer branches. 

 Regular box nails (8 or 10 penny) are driven into ends of 

 the sticks and then the nail heads are cut at a sharp angle 

 forming a point. Additional sharpening with an emery 

 wheel will expedite placement and reduce limb damage. 



Tie-downs can be used when branches have become too 

 long or stiff for spreaders. Materials for tying down the 

 limbs, such as baling twine, are cheaper than spreaders, but 

 the labor Involved in positioning the limbs is greater. When 

 the twine Is attached to a metal clip or wooden peg In the 

 soil, they may also cause Inconvenience. 



Time of limb positioning. Spring-type clothespins or tooth- 

 picks are used when succulent shoots suitable for perma- 

 nent branches are 4 to 8 Inches long. The limbs will be- 

 come fixed in the spread position in about 2 weeks. The 

 spreading procedure should be repeated on other limbs with- 

 in 3 to 4 weeks using the clothespins attached in mid-June 

 and others If necessary. DO NOT spread the limbs too flat; 

 spread to a 45° to 60° angle from the central leader (a 90° 



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Fig. 22. Richared Delicious on MM 106 showing excessive 

 vegetative growth and the lack of limb positioning. 



angle from the central leader would mean the limb is hori- 

 zontal to the ground). Spur-type trees need clothesplnnlng 

 more than the standard type cultivars. 



Limb positioning with the wire or wood spreaders can 

 be done at any season of the year, but is best used during 

 the dormant season. The basic design of the tree is easily 

 determined during the dormant season and thus decisions 

 are easier to make concerning the need of spreading. Limbs 

 that are too crowded can be saved by spreading; perhaps 

 the greatest benefit of spreading Is the omission of pruning 

 (Fig. 23). 



29 



