Espaliers are begun to be trained while still very young. A tree with a 1.5" caliper is too mature to start this process with much chance of success. And lopping off the top will not stimulate branching lower on the tree.....that's not how it works, sorry :-( Chances are the only growth you will get lower than what now occurs are rootstock shoots and that's not at all what you want to encourage.

If you want an espalier, look for whips late winter or early spring and start training at that time. Or even easier, look for a tree that is already trained in this manner.

I appreciate the feedback, even if it is bad news. I am curious about the risk of getting rootstock shoots, however. Wouldn't any growth above the graft point be safe? I guess I always assumed the graft joint was much closer to the soil level?

Alternatively you could buy rootstocks, $2.75 - $3.75 each and graft cuttings from your tree. Cummins Nursery sells onsies. There are many sources of info on the web including this video .

I prefer a text with pictures article like this one.

You need a knife, I used a retractable safety knife and grafting tape that I bought for $5 on eBay. Since your source for scions, the cuttings, is from your tree you can cut them from your tree to match the diameter of the rootstock. I use a crescent wrench to choose the exact spot to make the cuts. This will ensure the cambriums line up. Clean up your tools before you start with rubbing alcohol.

The biggest expense is the shipping which last spring was $22.50. The rootstocks only ship in the spring so you'd want to get your order in just after new years. The cuttings should be done in mid winter or as long as your tree is dormant. A suggestion I could make is to get two rootstocks, do two grafts and plant them in the same hole... maybe a foot apart. Later choose the healthiest and cut the other.

The rootstocks are numbered according to size. M9 is a dwarf, m7 is a semidwarf, m111 is a semifull rootstock. The M stands for where the rootstock series was developed. That one is Malling, in England, those with a G are Geneva in NY. The B's are a Russian rootstock. Generally the numbers match or are similar. I have used M7's and M111's. I also did a combination of the two to get a semi-dwarf tree with a larger root system. I would think you should select a rootstock to give you the length of the espaliers you want rather than deciding on a basis of height. In my soil, raw clay I find that a semi-dwarf tree seems to grow more like a dwarf. And I find that in the first couple years you shouldn't be disappointed with slow growth.

I would think any growth above the graft will be the apple variety of the tree. If the growth is from below the graft then take a cutting from the tree and graft to your new growth. In this case since your using the existing root system the time to first fruiting will be much quicker than on a new rootstock. I would let the cutting grow a couple years as long as it's getting sun. Then remove the unwanted tree.

You are not going to get branch growth above the graft simply by lopping off the top of the tree. Trees just do not grow that way. It is a botanical principle known as apical dominance. Primary growth will always be at the top or terminal ends of the plant and few tree species have an ability to backbud or produce growth below where branching already occurs.

You can certainly graft if you like but it is infinitely easier to start fresh with young whips you can train into the form you want yourself or purchase a young tree already trained in this manner.

Lopping off in spring will produce sprouts. I cut 20 year old espalier very hard, they sprouted everywhere, great renewal. Girdling~1/8" strip of bark removed also works to force sprouting below (without topping yet). Gil@skipleyfarm.com