Free apple tree! Help with transplanting... Update! Pic of the tree!

[Holachicka]

My Brother and Sister in law have an apple tree that they don't want... It was planted 5 years ago, by the prevoius owners of the house.

Does anyone have any tips on how I can safely transplant it to my property? I'd hate to go to all the work just to have it die on me...

Thanks!!

 

[thistlebloom]

Here's how I'd do it (and I have successfully transplanted several free trees).
First make sure the tree has been well watered a few days before you plan on moving it . Transplanting is stressful enough without also having a drought stressed tree. You don't want the soil drippy wet when you dig it, but nicely damp soil should hold a decent root ball.
You didn't mention how big it is or if it's leafed out already, it would be best of course if it were still dormant, but no biggie, it can still be done.
Have the hole you're putting into at home already dug, make sure it's plenty wide, ( you don't want to cramp the roots ) and fill it with water a few times to make sure there will be deep moisture available.
If you can find it in your area "Superthrive " is a good thing to have on hand to water the tree in with once you've transplanted it. (Ignore the hyperbole on the label, it's not a cure-all, but has been shown in gardener trials to help with growing new roots.)
Dig the tree with a wide root ball, probably a little further out than the dripline. The more roots you can keep the better. You will inevitably damage roots, and some will just have to be cut off, so don't lose any sleep over that, just do what's reasonable.
Bundle it up in trash bags, wet burlap, or whatever you can to keep those roots from drying.
Quickly get it home and into it's new hole. Don't use any soil amendments in the planting hole. That used to be recommended, but now it's been found to keep the roots from growing into the native soil. Backfill the hole about halfway, then run water into the hole to settle the roots and remove air pockets. Continue to backfill the hole until the tree is at the same level as it was in the old hole. You can tell by the marks on the trunk. You do not want to
plant it too deep. Make a watering basin a few inches high and water it in with the Superthrive.
It may wilt,and if it's blooming I would pick the blooms off so all the energy goes into root formation. You can mulch it with a few inches of compost, holding it back about 4 inches from the trunk. Then it's just a matter of keeping it watered, probably letting the surface of the soil dry out to about 2 inches deep between waterings. You won't get any fruit this year obviously, but hopefully it won't miss a beat,and you've got yourself a new tree with a little sweat equity!
Hope all that is helpful, let us know how it turns out!

 

[Holachicka]

Thanks!! That is VERY helpful! I haven't seen the tree, but my sis in law tells me it's just starting to get leaf buds. I'll get started on digging it's new home, how deep do you suppose I should dig the hole? If I can't find super thrive in my area, are there any other suggestions?

 

[journey11]

I saw something on tv once where people were transplanting big trees. They had to use a backhoe! I hope yours isn't THAT big. My little Bonnie Best apple tree is going into it's second year since I planted it and it's about 5' tall now and 3' wide. I've never moved an older tree before, but I do know the roots will go out about as far as the branches reach outward. That's your dripline. You don't want to lose too many of those roots, so you'll probably be digging a pretty big hole. They go wider than they do deep.

 

[thistlebloom]

Thanks!! That is VERY helpful! I haven't seen the tree, but my sis in law tells me it's just starting to get leaf buds. I'll get started on digging it's new home, how deep do you suppose I should dig the hole? If I can't find super thrive in my area, are there any other suggestions?

I'd start with about 18" and then when you get it home measure from the ground up to the soil line on the trunk to see if you need to go deeper. It's better to dig your hole slightly too shallow to begin with and make it deeper, than to dig too deep and backfill. That backfill will settle and make the tree deeper than it should be.
The ideal depth would be the soil line just below the root flare.In other words the tree should not look like a pencil stuck in the ground, but should have the base of the trunk where it widens out for the buttress roots be above the soil line. It's very common to see trees planted too deep, and sometimes they can survive that way for years, then suddenly decline and eventually die from different fungi and virus diseases. I don't know, does any of that make sense to you? I type much slower than I think (which isn't any too fast either ) so sometimes it doesn't all come out the way I meant.
If you can't find Superthrive there are other products that are supposed to be good for transplants, but I don't know names. A good garden center should be able to help with that, i.e probably
not Home Depot
Tell us how it goes!

 

[Holachicka]

Ok, Here is a pic of the tree, I'm waiting on dimensions of the window from my brother to give a better idea of the size... Does anyone have any advice? should I prune it first? If I need to prune it, what's the best way to go about it? THANKS!!!

 

[thistlebloom]

Looks pretty good size there chicka, but still totally doable.
I would prune it a bit if it was mine.
Let's see, those really tall stems that are "y"s can be taken down to about 8 - 12inches up from the "y". Cut to an outward facing bud using sharp clippers and angling the cut about 45 degrees.
Then you can thin out any congested growth thats growing toward the center of the tree, making it a rather open vase shape, you want the sun to reach inside. Take out any branches that are growing directly over another branch (like if they were stacked ), and of course anything thats dead. Ordinarily you wouldn't take so much off the height of the tree, but since your moving it that will make it a bit easier to handle. Keep us posted!