How to Protect Apple Trees During the Winter in Washington State

Novice fruit growers often make the mistake of assuming that during the long, cold, winter months that they won't have to do anything with their fruit trees. This is an assumption that can lower their trees' production the following summer. In order to have a lucrative apple harvest, apple growers in the state of Washington must properly care for their trees as winter approaches. Also Washington growers should consider replacing their old trees with varieties that have been genetically altered to withstand

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

1. Remove all of the dead or dying branches. This should be done during late October and into November. The reason you want to remove the dead branches before winter, is so that they wont be knocked loose and damage living sections of the trees during heavy winds, snow storms, or when there is a large amount of snow piling on the branches.

2. Make sure that there aren't any apples left on the branches. Apples that are left on the tree are going to create wind resistance during winter, and if the wind resistance is strong enough, the branches supporting the apples will crack and break.

3. Determine if any of your fruit trees are leaning or if they are growing to close to another tree. These trees have to be removed. While it might seem wasteful to cut down a perfectly healthy tree, you have to consider that if the tree is blown down during a windstorm or blizzard, you could lose several trees.

4. Drain any standing water from your orchard when the weather starts to get cold. Because of Washington state's high precipitation, there is always a chance that your fruit trees will be in standing water when the temperature drops to freezing. This excessive moisture increases the chances of your tree contracting pneumonia.

5. Washington state apple growers should not apply any nitrogen-based fertilizer to their apple trees from the months of mid-June until early autumn. The late application of the nitrogen fertilizer will help increase the trees' freeze resistance.

6. Washington apple growers should expect that at least one in every eight winters will be extremely harsh and cold. During these brutal winters, you should plan on walking through the orchard and brushing the excessive amount of snow from each trees limbs so that they don't snap under the weight.