After seeing the pictures of your tree, it looks as if it is very far gone.
Almost every
small branch is a sucker. However, you do have a few lateral branches which
could
be encouraged to be the dominant growth. I would start removing the suckers
when
the tree is dormant, taking off no more than 1/3 of them in any season. The
root
structure appears to be vigerous and healthy, so hopefully that energy can be
directed to more lateral growth. I'm curious if you are getting any apples
from it.
Any idea what variety it is? Once you get apples from it, you should taste them
to
determine if it is worth keeping the tree. I see from the picture that you are
starting
to grow some new trees. If this old tree is not producing good apples, it's
better to
cut it down to make room for new trees.

Sherwin D.



Ook wrote:

Here is some pics of the tree:

http://zootal.no-ip.info/stuff/2006%...s/DSCF6433.jpg
http://zootal.no-ip.info/stuff/2006%...s/DSCF6429.jpg

It's been butchered in the past, and now it's this big sprawling thing and
I'm not quite sure what to do with it.

"Zootal" wrote in message
...
Unfortunately, this thing is huge and probably past the point where I can
shape it. It's about 100 years old and the trunk is about 3 feet in
diameter, and the branches that split up from the trunk are easily 12". I
hesitate to touch them because they are so big. I can remove the vertical
suckers, and thin out the existing branches - but what else can you do
with a huge old tree? I'll try to post some pics this weekend so you can
see what I'm dealing with. Now that the leaves are gone, it's easier to
see what I'm working with.


"sherwindu" wrote in message
...
The suckers should be removed as they destroy the shape of the tree and
don't produce as much fruit as a lateral branch. You should not remove
more than 1/3 of a tree in any given season. Hopefully, you have enough
lateral branches growing that should be encouraged to grow faster when
the tree re-directs it's energy away from the suckers. Don't do any
cutting
while the tree sap is actively flowing, or that will encourage the tree
to send
out more suckers. Early Winter or late Fall might be the best time for
this
kind of pruning. Try to encourage a single central branch or leader to
direct
the tree
to a more pleasing shape, although with your very old tree that may not
be
possible.

Sherwin D.

Zootal wrote:

I have a very large very old apple tree in my back yard. It has not been
maintained much the last few years. It consists of a few main branches
and
hundreds of suckers growing straight up from the branches. Should I
remove
all of the upright growing suckers? I hate to butcher the tree, but it
is in
serious need of some TLC.