100 years ago they grew apples differently

Apple orchards a century ago were quite different from modern apple orchards. Today we get to look at a modern apple orchard and compare it to an almost 100-year-old orchard that was planted less than a mile away.

In that group I'm helping almost 40 people plant their first food forest before Halloween. We filmed a five-part food forest course that will help you start today! There's also an active community, weekly teaching Zoom calls covering homesteading and gardening, and a lot more exclusive content. Come and join us! I'll answer all your questions and get you started, saving you lots of money as you learn to grow your own food.

Planting an Apple Orchard: Then and Now

We got to visit two apple orchards in Grand Rapids Michigan. There we got to see the difference between an almost century-old system and how apples are currently grown commercially. The modern system was filmed at the beautiful Wells Orchard.

Planting an apple orchard can be done in a variety of ways.

If you have smaller space, want a quick harvest, and are willing to do every irrigation, staking, and care, it's easy to plant dwarf apple trees and grow them as a "hedge," like modern orchards do.

However, if you want a big, beautiful apple tree for shade and tons of apples, that needs little care and will live a hundred years or more, plant standard apples and give them lots of space to grow.

Wells Orchard in Grand Rapids, Michigan, started out with wide spacing a century ago. Apples were planted in a 40' x 40' grid pattern. Over the years, apple growing changed immensely, with spacing getting closer and closer as new techniques were discovered. Now, they plant apple trees on dwarfing rootstock at only 30" spacing inside each row, with rows a mere 12' apart!

You can grow apples too, and we hope this video gives you a good start.

[januarysdaughter]

I live on 2 acres, one is the meadow where I grow wild flowers/herb/berries and 3 chestnut trees. The other acre has my house, chicken shed, safe shed, vegetable gardens, a 16x26 greenhouse, a few big cedar trees and I meticulously planted 1 dwarf green apple and 1 dwarf pink lady apple, along with a dwarf mulberry, thornless blackberries, 2 dwarf red pears and 3 peach trees. I just dug 3 holes today awaiting my dwarf rainier, sour and sweet black cherry trees. Next year will be blueberries and potted cranberries and then possibly a heart walnut in the meadow. When I'm ready to retire, they will all be ready. Zone 6b here. ❤❤

[rubytuby]

When I was a kid, I would climb the apple tree in the backyard. About 30 feet up. The branches were shaped like a cradle at the top. Id pick and eat apples and lay down in the branches with a rope tied to my waist, just in case I fell asleep looking up at the sky.

[lifeofintention]

Hi from Australia... at our old place we had 4 apple trees around that were massive. The children used them as amazing climbing trees and they produced great apples each year, although the coddling moths thought so too... birds would nest in them (bronze wing pigeons) and they offered shade to other trees around. I was unsure of the variety, but they tasted crisp and delicious fresh from the tree. Thanks for sharing.

[novelogram]

It would be interesting to compare the nutritional values of the apples produced on large trees vs these dwarfs.

[flatheadpermaculture]

Modern orchards are extremely resource intensive- requiring irrigation, expensive trellising, spraying, etc. Old school orchards were productive for generations, requiring little more than a pruning saw and a picking ladder, while also keeping the eco-system in-tact.

[justinarnold]

In Victorian England they used to lay a stone plate a metre square underground and then plant the deciduous trees on top of it to stop the tap root going too deep and keep them in manageable size

[markharris]

As a teenager in the early sixties I worked summers in our family's fifty acre apple orchard. The orchard I believe was planted about the same time as the old orchard you showed, The towering York and Stame Winesap trees were beautiful. I spent many days deep in their folage fifty feet off the ground buried deep in their foliage with a sack over my shoulder that when full weighed half of what I did.

[gardengatesopen]

Nice 👍

Hey – Does anyone remember
waaay back when a
Red Delicious apple
really WAS delicious?!!

[RiversnRootsOutdoors]

Super cool to see!! Thanks for taking us along Dave! Man, a fort in an apple tree would be epic! Lol

[debbiesorganicgarden]

Aaron's Orchard in Ellijay, GA just replaced an old orchard with young trees planted only 4 feet from each other. Joshua Aaron is very knowledgeable about how to prune them for the most amount of fruit. So interesting. It may not be too far from where you are located.

[BNM-bt]

0:15 Leaning on the everlasting arms of YAH!! 🎶
HalleluYAH!!!

[felisconcolor]

When I saw the modern orchard layout, I was immediately reminded of the espaliered tree practice, which has been around for millenia, and would make for an excellent intermediate step between traditional large tree and this extreme production-boosting method.

In more temperate climates, the use of brick or masonry walls as the backstop for espaliered trees offers the addiitonal benefit of extending the growing season, as the wall's thermal mass serves to keep the tree productive for several additional weeks.

[elijahsanders]

Our Grandparents had 2 granny smith type apple trees (and pears, grapes, cherries, etc) on a gentle sloping hill down to an irregation ditch. They had large trunks, but were relatively short, and had thick branches not far off the ground so we could easily climb them, and very productive, I think my great Grandpa planted them, and my Grandpa pruned them every year (we had a lot of fun with the pruned water shoots :)

[zooflorida]

When planting my food forest, I was going to keep them smaller. You had recommended the book “plant a little fruit tree”, and I am using the ideas to keep my fruit trees manageable.

[Huntnlady]

Great video! My Granny Smith is a tip producer, and my Honey Crisp is a spur producer. Just learned that from you. Good thing I didn't do a second pruning on my Granny Smith in early summer, as some have advised.

[joangordoneieio]

so interesting. the Village in NM I live in once had apple orchards. there are still huge old trees everywhere with apples free for the picking!

[candacewilliams]

Fun to see you heŕe in Michigan talking about our apples! In the nirth there are lots of old pioneer apples. Animals have spread the trees which were planted by native Americans first and then pioneer homesteaders next. We love it in the fall!

[MynewTennesseeHome]

My Grandpa worked seasonally for a nearby orchard in Indiana back in the 50-60's. I remember going with him a couple times to "help". He would climb the ladders and toss fruit to me on the ground... I wasn't a very good catch so I only went a couple times...lol

[nellieblighhill]

The world is praying for Florida. Goodluck to everyone.

[lolaseymour]

Thanks for getting out there & showing us life beyond our garden gate. Great information.