CARE FOR YOUR TREE

• In spring, weed around trunk, keep up mulch and add seaweed solution each month.

• In summer, thin fruit or trim fruit-bearing limbs – if branches get too heavy they can snap and invite disease.

• In autumn, pick fruit. Apples are ready for harvest when the fruit comes away easily when you twist the stalk. Early-season fruit (from January) and many mid-season (March) apples should be eaten immediately, while some mid-seasons can be stored for a few weeks. You can store late-season fruit (April-may) for up to six months.

• In winter, give your tree a heavy prune, cu ing just above fruiting spurs, so you can control its growth habit or remove damaged limbs. Thin out the branches so light gets to all parts of the tree. You can cut back new growth by up to two-thirds. Then wrap the trunk with a grease band to prevent winter moth caterpillars from climbing the tree and laying their eggs in your emerging fruit.