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Gala appears to be partial tip bearer? Or maybe it isn't Gala?

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  • Gala appears to be partial tip bearer? Or maybe it isn't Gala?

    I bought what I thought to be a Gala apple tree just over two years ago. It is currently covered in blossom, some of which appears at the tip of stems. See the picture below.

    Does this indicate that this tree is a partial tip bearer? If so, I can't find any mention of Gala being a partial tip bearer so the variety may have the wrong label on it?

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  • #2
    I have sometimes seen Gala mentioned as being a tip-bearer, or tip-and-spur-bearer.

    A lot of varieties are partial tip-bearers but aren't mentioned as such in 'the books', perhaps because they produce plenty of blossom on spurs therefore cropping isn't affected by pruning off the tips. Or perhaps the book didn't research the variety thoroughly.

    I also have a suspicion that rootstock, soil and climate have an effect. Drier and milder climates seem to encourage more flower bud production and can turn tip-bearers into tip-and-spur-bearers, or can turn spur-bearers into tip-and-spur bearers.

    Irish Peach is listed as 'a pure tip bearer' but for me it is both tip and spur, and will also fruit along the sides of last year's or two-year-old wood.
    Other varieties which come to mind as being listed as spur-bearers but which I find to be tip and spur:
    Court Pendu Plat
    D'Arcy Spice
    Hambledon Deux Ans
    Laxton's Epicure
    Norfolk Beefing

    Varieties which come to mind as never bearing on tips nor on the sides of last year's wood - always on spurs:
    Jupiter
    Spartan
    .

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    • #3
      "Court Pendu Plat"
      Agree with that, my CPP is 3 years old and covered in buds and blossom on every tip.
      Feed the soil, not the plants.
      (helps if you have cluckies)

      Man v Squirrels, pigeons & Ants
      Bob

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      • #4
        I think you will find in a few weeks the tip of this shoot has grown past the flower, and the fruits will form on spurs in the usual way. A characteristic of Gala is the ability to fruit heavily on maiden wood.

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