apple tree with large fungus

[chispi]

hi i'm new here, quite new to working in the garden in general.
A year ago bought a house with an old apple tree in the garden..
the tree pre dates the house (house is 1930's)
and was originally part of an orchard.

we are only now starting doing more in the garden as the house was quite poor inside.

our tree last year had loads of apples on it, this year as well.
but this year a large fungus has grown on the main trunk.
(will post pictures shortly)

we would love to keep the tree as it has history and we love it in the garden + the fact that it makes quite a lot of fruit.

any advice would be helpful.

[veggiechicken]

Hi Chispi and welcome. As well as the pics of the fungus, some of the tree and the apples would be good. Maybe someone here can identify the variety for you.
Also, if you could add your location to your profile please it would help with any further advice you need.

[FB.]

Probably the inside of the trunk is dead (but the outer parts are alive) and the fungus is feeding on the dead inner trunk. It's quite common on old trees, especially if they have had large branches pruned off which expose the inner wood.
Eventually the tree will become hollow.
The tree may well continue to grow and fruit and not care, but the hollow trunk will make it more prone to being broken in windy weather and if the base of the trunk or its upper roots are also hollowed-out it may gradually start to lean until it lays on the ground and one of the side branches grows into a new trunk to start a new tree.

There's nothing you can do to get rid of the fungus.

So I suggest leaving the tree alone.
However, put up some pictures of the tree so its general condition can be seen - it might benefit from some attention, but anything you do needs to be carefully considered; it's not advisable just to 'tidy it up' unless you know what you're doing, why you're doing it that way and what will result from what you've done.

I've noticed a lot of people in the last week have 'tidied up' their large old apple trees. I bet half of them die next year because now is about the most damaging time to prune an apple or pear tree. You'll be taking its leaves away which will deprive it of winter reserves to start growth and fruiting next year, and at this time of year canker spores are released in huge numbers, looking for wounds or leaf scars to infect.

[chispi]

I will do a picture of the hole tree in a bit.

the old thing has very much leaning over, it keeps growing new sections from the base of the trunk right at ground level.
there was about 10/14 of them, my neighbour who has another apple tree said to pick the largest shoot and let it grow. (hope this is ok)

I will take a picture of the hole tree

[veggiechicken]

I'm no expert but it looks like Inonotus hispidus, Shaggy Bracket, identification

[FB.]

there was about 10/14 of them, my neighbour who has another apple tree said to pick the largest shoot and let it grow. (hope this is ok)

Shoots from the base could be from the rootstock, depending on how low it was grafted or depending on whether it is a tree grown from seed (unlikely).
Desirable varieties of apple are not propagated by seed; they are grafted in order to remain true to type (seedlings would be new varieties in their own right, with characteristics - good or bad - from both their parents).
Rootstocks - whether clonal or seedling - will not produce the same type of fruit as what has been grafted onto the rootstock. It may even have been grafted onto a wild seedling crab apple.

Shoots at the base need to be got rid of. Now would be a good time to remove them completely because by doing so the roots feeding them will be severely weakened without weakening the roots connected to the rest of the tree, and it should calm down the 'suckering' for next year.

But before doing anything, let's see pictures of the whole tree.

[FB.]

the old thing has very much leaning over

That's fairly normal for old apple trees. If left to do its own thing it will eventually lay on its side and parts in contact with the ground will eventually root after being in contact with damp ground and will become new trees.
If you don't want it to lean any further (or at least slow the rate at which it leans), wedge a wooden fence post under where the main branches join the trunk. That'll also stop it breaking off in a storm.

[chispi]

I would rather it did not lean over more as its current position is reasonable to the fence between us an next door. I will make a wooden prop for it.

is there any way to identify if the new shoot is the same tree type/family of tree?

[chispi]

[chispi]

will try to correct the picture.. photobucket is a pain, but shows the new shoot.

[veggiechicken]

Here ya go, Chispi

[FB.]

is there any way to identify if the new shoot is the same tree type/family of tree?

If you mean the shoot coming out of the ground about a foot away from the trunk, then it almost certainly won't produce the same kind of fruit. The leaves of the shoot seem darker than the main tree, suggesting they are not the same.

However, if you take some healthy, well-grown, young twigs (known as scions) and graft them onto the shoot that's coming out of the ground, you will have the same rootstock as before with the same variety grafted onto it.

Judging by all the crowded/bushy upright shoots, I'm guessing that someone 'had a go' at 'tidying it up' a couple of years ago, but didn't follow through with further pruning.

The tree is too leafy and crowded at the moment to see what could be done, so I suggest wait until after all its leaves have fallen, then take some pictures from all directions to see what can be done with it.

[chispi]

love the idea of grafting sections onto the new shoot but im totally new to all things garden..
I am quite practical but never done anything like that before.

[FB.]

love the idea of grafting sections onto the new shoot but im totally new to all things garden..
I am quite practical but never done anything like that before.

Sometimes I pass by the Bedford area. Maybe during the winter I can drop in.

[snakeshack]

Have a go , everything you do , you once did for the first time, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain


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