Dig up an apple tree as gently as possible

Dig up an apple tree as gently as possible

An apple tree has flat and fine roots

At first glance, it may seem easier that an apple tree does not have very deep roots. However, as a shallow root, the apple tree is all the more endangered if its fine roots are carelessly cut off. The fine hair roots in the flat soil around the tree disc provide the apple tree with urgently needed nutrients and moisture. If you cut these fine roots too close to the trunk, the transplanted tree will have a very difficult time growing and surviving in the new location.

also read

  • Hibernate an apple tree
  • Cultivate an apple tree in a pot
  • Rejuvenate an old apple tree in the garden

You don't transplant an old tree

It is generally very difficult to successfully transplant an apple tree more than ten or fifteen years old. That is why every time an apple tree is planted, careful consideration should be given to the subsequent dimensions. If an older apple tree has to be moved anyway, the following factors are important for survival:

  • a mild and not too dry time in autumn to move
  • adequate watering at the new location
  • carefully digging out the roots
  • a strong cut back of the treetop

Due to the shape of the roots, digging has to be less deep, but wider around the tree trunk. If you wrap a tarpaulin or a blanket around the root ball for further transport, you will protect it from excessive crumbling of earth as the degree of dryness increases.

Remove a badly fruiting apple tree

If you want to remove an old apple tree due to poor harvests, you could first try to refine it with the copulation of a noble twig. If this doesn't help either, you can leave a piece of trunk about one meter long when you cut the tree so that you can use it as a lever when digging out the root ball.

Tips & Tricks

If the planting of a new tree is planned at the same location as the old tree, the root network must be completely removed when excavating. Otherwise, the young seedling may experience poor growth.