We have three young apple trees, planted four years ago (SW France), including a Bramley and a James Grieve. Last year and this year we are noticing quite a number of the new shoots going floppy and quickly dying, followed by the end couple of inches of the young branch. One of the trees has a little infestation of green/black fly on tips, which we have treated as soon as we saw it. But oddly it seems that the shoots that flop aren't suffering from greenfly, they look OK. Otherwise the trees are in good health, and this year have had loads of blossom, and now loads of small fruit that have set.
Can anyone tell us what the problem might be, please?
I was really hoping for some helpful advice or comment on our apple trees with floppy tips - is there anyone who might know out t here? we have had enough rainy spells every now and again, so we don't think it is cos they are too dry.
We need a bit more information!
Is it a dwarf / minarette type tree or a mature tree.
A picture might help!
When did you prune it ( assuming you did)
When you say 'floppy' water wood springs to mind, and these are generally pruned down to the basal cluster around September/October ( at least in Yorkshire we do)
We await your reply!
Dwarf/minarette? - I can't remember the details when we bought the James Grieve in UK four years ago but it is small, and I don't think it is meant to grow to a huge tree! It was severely set back by a horrendous hail storm in its first year, but has survived and last year produced about a dozen good apples. But last year it had the same problem at this time last year, of shoots going limp. I don't think it can be from dryness, as it has been almost impossible to get the veg patch dug over because it has been largely wet for the last couple of months.
I've put in three photos, one to give its general size, and the other to show the shoots, plus the fact that there can be limp shoots right next to so-far healthy ones.
And the ones that are limp aren't necessarily ones that have got green-fly infestations. Lots of fruit have set, but where the tips have gone limp, this has in come cases spread down to the first lot of set fruit, that have quickly died.
(http://i1123.photobucket.com/albums/l543/peanuts46/RIMG0003-4_zpsaf7d9e26.jpg) (http://s1123.photobucket.com/user/peanuts46/media/RIMG0003-4_zpsaf7d9e26.jpg.html)
(http://i1123.photobucket.com/albums/l543/peanuts46/RIMG0004-2_zps4a57f3bb.jpg) (http://s1123.photobucket.com/user/peanuts46/media/RIMG0004-2_zps4a57f3bb.jpg.html)
(http://i1123.photobucket.com/albums/l543/peanuts46/RIMG0005-5_zps02080fac.jpg) (http://s1123.photobucket.com/user/peanuts46/media/RIMG0005-5_zps02080fac.jpg.html)
Sorry I should have added that it is a James Grieve we are having the problem with.
It looks like fireblight.......
Oh . . . having looked on-line, that doesn't look so good.It could be that judging by the description of the new clusters of fruit browning and dying. I don't see mention of the tips plopping over though, that is the first sign with our tree. There are two other young trees quite near, and several old large apple trees that aren't showing signs. So I'd better go out and prune off the tips today anyway.
The info mentions the disease coming in through bark damage, and there are certainly strong signs still from the serious hail damage in 2009, evident on the young trunk.
I'm hoping we can just leave it to get on with life, and not have to uproot it - it was an attempt to re-find my memories of the James Grieve tree we used to have when I was a child, always my favourite apple.
My guess is Blossom Wilt!
see here;
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?pid=92 (http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?pid=92)
Looking on the bright side, my daughter has large oldish apple tree which has either fireblight or blossom wilt (what is the difference?) and although it looks unsightly, it produces plenty of apples every year, so we have stopped worrying about it. Nearby pear trees seem unaffected.
Well, I've been out and removed all affected shoots/branches just in case. So it looks rather on the pruned side now. It's a shame as two weeks ago it was just covered in blossom, in fact all our apple trees have been/are full of blossom this year.
Perhaps it is rather like looking up your just-diagnosed illness on internet - in general not always a good idea! Our daughter (a rheumatologist) got very cross with me a year ago when I started looking up treatment for my knee, and came down firmly against this injection and that treatment. I looked quite silly, when I found that in fact I'd had precisely the injection I was now frightened about, 6 months previously, and it had been fine and very beneficial!
So all this info about fireblight and Blossom wilt looks much worse when you read all about it on the internet, rather than in my old fashioned gardening books. I will keep my fingers crossed, won't get my husband to go and uproot it, not this year anyway!
Thanks for all the advice.
You are so right! This daughter is a hospital haematology consultant, so everyone has cancer......but they don't. Hope for the best,