Glenn:

If I'm seeing correctly, you only have one bad angle. That's the one going back and left out of the lower circle, right? So just cut that branch off and the rest of the tree will be fine.

The Fruitnut

Thanks Fruitnut-
I guess I always like my crotch angles to be much more perpendicular than that. Such as shown in this pic of my little liberty tree. Would you agree that these are good? Maybe they could have gone upwards just a little.
{{gwi:113021}}

So, you think GS1 and GS2 are OK?
{{gwi:113022}}

And that this GS3 is bad? If I get rid of it, IÂm getting rid of a good size branch for this tree. If I decide to do it, should I clip it now? Or wait until winter?
{{gwi:113023}}

And this GS4? It wasnÂt visible in the original posting.
{{gwi:113024}}

Thanks again,
-Glenn

Gleen:

Your 90 degree angles are pretty and certainly won't break out. But that leaves you with a branch that is flat or even lower, not necessarily good. If it were me, I'd live with your Granny just the way it is, not perfect but OK. OK with one improviso, don't overload those limbs. You've already seen the problems with biennial bearing. So just thin enough and all those crotches will be OK.

The Fruitnut

The problem with bad crotch angles is that the branches are more likely to break under a load of fruit. If you thin and support the branches, maybe even put a couple of posts in and string a couple of wires across so that you can tie the branches to the wire for support, it should be OK. Then next year, for fun, learn to graft and graft a replacement tree. Eventually, in 8 or 9 years, you can take out tree number one, and keep the tree you grafted and trained so perfectly.

Thanks Fruitnut and GardenMom!
Yeah, my 90 degree liberty branches... Is there any harm in letting them be horizontal? Or is it just weird. Anyway, I plant to let them drift upwards now.
Yep, I think I'll just thin the fruit and winter prune the branch so it never gets too long. I never even thought of grafting one of my own trees. Duh! I'd need to get some rootstock.
Thanks again!
-Glenn

No harm in horizontal branches. They are often trained that way in espalier. They won't grow as strongly, and they may need support with a fruit load for a few years. Since they are low you may eventually need to take them out if the upper branches grow more strongly and shade them out so that they become unfruitful.