Oh gosh, there's tons of high-density planting videos, pictures and such on the 'net. Keep searching and let us know when you find the exact one you are looking for.

It sounds like you may be describing the "Fruiting Wall" method. This Jon Clements video shows him picking the apples and comparing yields.

A good (and long) video on high density apples is from Terence Robinson.

i dont see the difference between planting so many small trees in such close proximity and planting one or two standards that are multi grafted...

canadianplant, the only difference I can think of is the multi-grafted trees tend to be weaker. We lost a multi-grafted apple last year, and replaced it in another part of the property.

In it's spot sits a very happy ruby red grapefruit.

Suzi

Wouldn't larger trees generally get quite tall? At least if you wanted it to get big enough to compete with the production of 10 smaller trees (20x20 vs 3x12 for example). Since each small tree starts at the ground, you can still get production from each, while keeping the whole thing pretty low.

True bob, but you also get a larger harvest. You can still keep standards smaller as well ( aybe not dwarf size of course). That many trees in a small place makes me think of how much upkeep it would take in the long run. All that soil work, spraying, pruning and training makes such a high density yard undesierable, and mines pretty dense (about 12 in a 100 x 30 foot lot). I would take climbing up a few feet over that work any day.

Not saying that high density orchards dont work or dont have their place, I just dont see much difference from less but bigger trees then an army of smaller dwarf trees that to me would eventually lead to stress on the trees, soil and gardener in the home setting

I was told that the reason is that the harvest while the whips are young is the higher quality fruit - getting premium prices at market. Each variety has its own time frame and the plants are removed after they stop producing top quality fruit. None of them are kept long enough to become trees.

Triangle - That I didnt know myself, but again ill bring up the point of all that extra work, not to mention that those trees wouldnt need to be removed if the alternative I suggested was implemented, at least not in such a small time frame.

The only case of such high density planting makes sense to me is when support species are used, and when you plant a nitrogen fixing tree/shrub in the same hole as the fruit tree, only to remove the nitrogen shrub in a few years, and using it as mulch.

Again, my garden is pretty high density, but not of the same kind of plant. Im more worried about the care due to so much nutrient use from the soil. You would proabably get that high quality fruit longer making sure you dont over plant.

I would not consider 12 trees in a 100 x 30 foot lot high density at all, IMHO.

Factory farming isn't interested in retention of soil quality etc., it's all about production and profitability. The trees are there to generate income, that is all. If it becomes apparent more money can be made from soy beans or stopping farming operations completely, selling to a housing developer then there go the trees.

Oregon - That is not including the shrubs (saskatoonberries, raspberries, blackberries, boysenberries, strawberries, dozens of kinds of herbs, multiple kinds of bamboo, clematis, grapes and roses and on top of that and more the annual veggies, which usually is about 20 kinds.

Keep in mind half the lot is taken up by the house garage and patio. I have about 120 different species in the beds. That does not include this years additions of nitrogen fixing shrubs of a few species.

Bboy - that is true, but in those situations you still would want to limit work while getting the same sort of yeild. Also, most people if not all ive seen on here use these " high density" plantings in their back yard.

I don't think fertility will be a problem in a backyard setting if you keep the planting well mulched with wood chips. In fact, I've heard that it can be too fertile after a decade or two.

Much of my yard is planted at 4-6 by 10-12 spacing and so far (started in 2010) it has been surprisingly low maintenance. Most of the work has been in the mulching and bagging the apples. The other problem is that it is a pain to edge around the rows. If I don't, then I get a thin line of tall grass and sometimes crabgrass will get into the beds.

wood chips can leech nitrogen. most people would just toss on synthetic nitrogen which can cause its own problems in the long run. three seasons isnt quitenenough time to say there arent any problems... especially if you ammended the soil at planting. using compost and manure as a top dressing before the mulch actually builds soil.

I have planted high density apple trees around the parts of my vegetable garden and it has worked out fine. I would not of been able to plant even dwarf trees because I don't have enough space for them if allowed to grow out like a normal dwarf apple tree. And it has allowed me to grow many different varieties in a small area. The pruning is very easy to do.

My understanding is that woodchips only rob N from the plants if they are mixed into the soil. When they are used on top as a mulch, they slowly build the soil.

I agree that a few years isn't enough to have a complete picture. But, so far, I haven't seen any issues. It's definitely easier to get at these apples than the ones my parents and grandparents grew. Each had 1 tall tree which produced wormy apples. My great uncle had better cared for trees, but they were also tall and necessitated a ladder or pole picker for most of the fruit. Not that you can't keep a standard pruned low, but I think you could spend more time training the large tree to stay low and very wide (basically a big espalier) than it would take to grow dwarf spindles in a row.

I think there is more potential for issues with high density peaches and plums (vs apples), as I don't think there are any widely available dwarfing rootstocks.