11 July 2015

Le pommier qui penche

One of our apple trees — by far the largest of the four — is leaning seriously toward the west. We don't know how old the tree is, but it might have been planted in the 1960s, when the house was built. Or who knows? Maybe it was already growing on the property at that point.


Anyway, it is leaning seriously and the trunk seems to be developing a vertical split under the weight of all the apples this year. Since about 2009, two enormous branches on the east side of the tree have broken off under the strain. Both times, the branches were so loaded with apples that just a little bit of rainfall added enough weight to make the branches crack and fall to the ground.


So now all the weight is on the west side of the tree, and this is a year in which the apples are very plentiful. You can see how low the branches were hanging just a few days ago. Luckily, we haven't really had any rain. Anyway, the apples are still pretty small and green at this point.


The other day, in an effort to keep the tree from toppling over, I went out and cut off a lot of low-hanging branches — and hundreds of apples (above). I picked up a basket-load of the green fruit with the idea of making green-apple jelly, which is loaded with pectin, I've read. I don't know if I've cut off enough heavy branches to make a difference... time will tell.


Our blogger friend Jean of A Very Grand Pressigny says the apples on this big old tree are called "Bramleys" and they are great for making pies, tarts, and crumbles. They are pretty sour eaten raw. We've already lost one of the five apple trees that were growing here when we moved into the house in 2003, and now it looks like this gigantic one isn't long for this world.

18 comments:

  1. Ken, you can give it another lease of life by removing the lowest branch...
    on the left in the first picture...
    in two stages and begin once the leaves have fallen [mid- in November'ish]...
    first cut about two to three foot from the main trunk...
    second about one inch...
    no more, no less... see of the tree has created a bulge near the main trunk on that branch...
    it isn't always there... but if it is, or there is a sign of it... immediately before it is the place to cut....
    the tree will callus out better from that bulge.
    Apply mastic [goujon] immediately after cutting.
    BUT... until then, brace that branch by jamming a length of wood between it and the ground at the far end...
    that will give that bit an extra "trunk" against which to lean...
    alternatively... pick all the fruit on that arm of the tree and make loads of jelly...
    a brace is the easier... the latter will give you presents for people!
    That will save the tree without a doubt...

    And save the young shoots... and give them to your local apple society...
    they will graft them up... if you take an apple or two along, they will be able to confirm Jean's identification.
    Personally, I think it unlikely that it is a Bramley as such...
    they are very difficult to get hold of in France...
    but it will be the French equivalent...
    possibly Pommier Triomphe de Kiel which is also sold as Bramleys Seedling... but isn't...

    Pauline uses the first thinnings of all the apples to make jellies... plain, herb, mint... whatever...
    but she hasn't yet done Susan's thing of making "raw" pectin and freezing it...
    mainly because I think we just don't have the freezer space!

    -------------------------------

    I've just checked my pruning advice above and found you this link with full instructions...
    from the Royal Horticultural Society website...
    Pauline and I always tend to look there first..
    https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=279
    Good luck,
    Tim

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    1. The end of that third line should read...
      [in mid-November'ish]...
      don't know how that happened...
      the original text file I wrote is correct!!

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  2. We had already talked about sawing that limb off, but we can't get the chain saw started right now. I guess we should wait for autumn. And I'll go pull a lot more apples off all the branches growing on that limb.

    I think the tree is likely to be some kind of Reinette, but I don't know.

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  3. Reinettes are sweet when ripe and even our very elderly Reinette Blanche....
    which has some very large fruit amongst its burden...
    aren't as big or lumpy as Bramleys...
    but every Northern hemisphere country has its own version of a big, lumpy, delishiush cooker...
    everyone needs an apple big enough to bake...
    and they are all related...
    after all, the original Bramley's Seedling must have come from one such tree in or near the original Oxford garden!!
    Also, Bramleys do not fruit very well...
    they are a triploid and need two other trees in flower at the same time period to pollinate them!
    And they cannot pollinate other trees....
    many people have bought a solitary Bramley for their orchard...
    and planted a James Grieve for early eating...
    and something else to flower late and miss the frosts and eat later in the year, or after keeping overwinter...
    and got no fruit off their cooker because neither of the others were in flower at the same time....
    we've got a triploid pear here, but that is easier to get a crop from as most pears flower at the same time.
    Mind you, it has taken all the pears seven years to start producing...
    have fun! And make a lot of apple jellies....
    if you haven't got a jelly bag and stand, you could always borrow one of ours for a while...
    we've got three... but at the moment the amount being produced doesn't demand all three being in use at the same time...
    fortunately ;-)....

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  4. at least its not leaning toward ur house or shed

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    1. You're right about that. I don't think it's going to fall on the vegetable garden either. In a way, it would be a relief not to have that apple tree any more. We're thinking we'll plant a cherry tree in its place, when the day comes.

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  5. I've never seen happier apple trees anywhere else! Too bad you're not in Normandy where you could make some potent ciders with your apples (probably the wrong kind though). I've never tasted green apple jam.

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    1. I don't know what kind of apples they use for cider, but then I like wine a lot more than I like cider. Calvados is good, but I don't think we could make that. As far as green apple jelly goes, I have a French book that says it's good to add it to other jams because it is sort of lemony in flavor and full of pectin.

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    2. Ken, any old apples can be used for cider...
      but for the best taste it must contain apples heavy in tanins, like Black Dabinett...
      grown in the UK for cider a lot... often said to originate in Somerset, but it is in fact an old French cider variety...
      other wonderful names include Yeovil Sour, Brown Snout, Dymock Red, Foxwhelp and Katy....
      Katy is an oddball cider apple... it is both an eater and a juicer...
      we grow Katy here... at the moment for eating, with the thinnings being used for jelly... but who knows.

      Pauline and I... while at a 2CV camp in the UK near Canterbury, visited a cidery.... they did a single varietal Bramley Apple still cider... once we had overcome the mouth-puckering dryness... a bit like sucking a chunk of lemon....
      it was a wonderfully refreshing cider... probably a good job too, it was a 5 litre container...
      I poached some pork chops in it as well as some sausages... both were great!

      The French ciders are much better than the UK loopy-juice... lower gravity, 5%ABV at most...
      lower than the UK ones start!!
      And they are much better flavoured...
      the Val de Rance Doux at 2%ABV has a really nice balance of nose, mouthfeel and finish...
      and it is a long aftertaste to finish... full of oaky, earthy flavours.
      You wouldn't be able to sell such a low gravity brew to the citzens of Somerset... despite the great taste!!

      And then there are the perrys... poiré... a whole other taste session altogether...
      especially the wild yeast fermented ones!

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  6. I think I should come to France for an apple tart..

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    1. The apple tarts are delicious. You've probably seen some of the tarts Walt makes here on the blog.

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  7. I use excess/windfall/thinnings apples to make compote and bottle it in the little jars that are sold containing terrines. One jar makes a simple dessert for two on its own or with icecream etc. Just peel and roughly slice the apples and put them in a saucepan with a splash of water. Cook gently until they go whoof then stir in a sweetener of your choice (honey, marmalade that didn't set) and/or spices (e.g. a teaspoon of cinnamon) to taste. Put in clean jars then give them about half an hour with the lid on loosely in the oven at 120 C to sterilise them, Tighten the lids and they should keep at least a year.
    I haven't made apple jelly for about ten years. Pauline

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    1. That sounds good, Pauline. We make a lot of half-liter containers-full of applesauce at the end of the summer and keep them in the freezer for making cakes and pies/tarts over the winter. I've made applesauce flavored with cinnamon, of course, but also some flavored with vanilla which I think is good.

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  8. Wow, what a LUSH green yard you have, especially this year. Good luck with the apples and the tree!

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    1. We do have a lush green yard, Judy. The woman who sold us the house and land said of the place: C'est un havre de paix dans un océan de verdure. It's a nice formula. We both have now lived here longer than we've ever lived in any other house or apartment in our lives (with, for me, the exception of the house I grew up in in N.C. and left when I went to college at 18). The yard is lush even though we have had basically no rain since May 1.

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  9. Hi Ken, LaPré DelaForge has a good idea. Until you can saw, prop up the branch. You don't want it to break off and harm the tree by not having a clean cut. And you don't want a broken branch harming anything under it. You may even decide to keep the prop and not saw off the branch, as the Japanese do.

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  10. It will be a terrible shame if you lose that Bramley tree!

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