Kitchen Garden Forum

Has anyone any advice on the best way to remove suckers without killing the tree? Small Floribunda crab apple - about 15 years old.

When it first started sending them out I tore them off as far down as I could get as advised in all the books. It sent more out so I just chopped them off with the secateurs. There are now a lot more. Last year I painted them with herbicide when they sent leaves out which seemed to stop them a bit. I was thinking of dosing them with something stronger. Any suggestions? It is a nice umbrella shaped smallish tree that the birds like sitting in on their way to the bird table.

No expert, but surely anything stronger might damage/kill the main plant. Is this a grafted tree?

No it's on it's own roots, that's why I'm afraid I might kill it, but it looks a mess with all the suckers. I suppose I could try something stronger and replace it if it dies.

Anything chemical will go into the roots and kill the plant, I take it you would like a "standard" plant and it is not having any of it. I know there are more than one species of Malus, maybe have a search around and see if there's one that is less shrub and more tree.

Do hope you're not using the crab apples for culinary purposes.

No Peter, purely ornamental.

Sorry it's a rubbish photo but it was a bit dark. I think it shows the suckers I want to get rid of.

I'd just keep cutting them off. Eventually you must weaken them & they will lessen in number. Nice looking tree & huge bird feeder! I get these around the trunk of my fruit trees under the graft & cut them low as possible, maybe need to do it twice a year. You do get a little jumble of knitted branches at the bottom left but I quite like the look & probably a good habitat for something.