Apple tree Planting Instructions

Buy dormant, bare-root, 1-year-old trees, is possible. Dwarfs and semidwarfs will bear in 3 to 4 years, yielding 1 to 2 bushels per year. Standard-size trees will bear in 5 to 8 years, yielding 4 to 5 bushels of apples per year.
Apples do not fertilize themselves; ideally, plant at least one other variety that blooms at the same time.

Choose a sunny site. For best fruiting, an apple tree needs "full sunlight," which means six or more hours of direct summer sun daily. The best exposure for apples is a north- or east-facing slope.
Pay attention to the soil. Apple trees need well-drained soil, not too wet. Soil needs to be moderately rich and retain moisture as well as air; mulch with straw, hay, or some other organic material to keep soil moist and provide nutrients as they decompose.
Dwarf apple trees are notoriously prone to uprooting under the weight of a heavy crop, so you should provide a support system for your hedge. You can grow your trees against a fence, or you can provide free-standing support in the form of a trellis.
Cross-Pollinating
Cross-pollination occurs between varieties, so you need at least two different varieties, not just two different trees.
If you lack space for more than one apple tree (or do not want more than one), the pollen came come from somewhere else. You could graft a single branch of another variety onto your tree, rely on a nearby neighbor's tree or crab apple tree, or snip of a flowering branch from another variety at bloom time and set it into a bucket of water at the base of your tree.
For best results, include a 'Grimes Golden', 'Golden Delicious', 'Red Delicious', or 'Winter Banana' in your planting. These varieties are known pollinators.
Nursery catalogs will provide pollination charts.

Care

Minimize Pruning of a Young Tree
Pruning slows a young tree's overall growth and can delay fruiting, so don't be in a hurry to prune, other than removing misplaced, broken, or dead branches. There are several techniques to direct growth without heavy pruning. For example:

Rub off misplaced buds before they grow into misplaced branches.
Bend a stem down almost horizontally for a few weeks to slow growth and promote branches and fruiting. Tie down with strings to stakes in the ground or to lower branches.
Prune a Mature Tree Annually
Once an apple tree has filled in and is bearing fruit, it requires regular, moderate pruning.

Prune your mature tree when it is dormant. Completely cut away overly vigorous, upright stems (most common high up in the tree).
Remove weak twigs (which often hang from the undersides of limbs.
Shorten stems that become too droopy, especially those low in the tree.
After about ten years, fruiting spurs (stubby branches that elongate only about a half-inch per year) become overcrowded and decrepit. Cut away some of them and shorten others.
When a whole limb of fruiting spurs declines with age, cut it back to make room for a younger replacement.
Thin Ruthlessly
Thin or remove excess fruit. This seems hard but this practice evens out production, prevents a heavy crop from breaking limbs, and ensures better-tasting, larger fruit crop.
Soon after fruit-set, remove the smallest fruits or damaged ones,leaving four inches between those that remain.

Pests

Apples are prone to pests. Here are some pointers:

Keep deer at bay with repellents or fencing; deter mice and rabbits with wire-mesh cylinders around the base of the tree.
Sprays may be needed for insects, although one of the worst culprits, the apple maggot, can be trapped simply enough by hanging one or two round, softball-size balls, painted red and coated with sticky "Tangle-Trap," from a branch in June through the summer. Reapply the sticky goo a time or two, as necessary.
Fend off diseases by raking apple leaves, burying them beneath mulch, or grinding them with a lawn mower at season's end.
Pruning reduces disease by letting in more light and air.

Harvest/Storage

Harvest Patiently. After all this pruning and caring, be sure to harvest your apples at their peak of perfection.

Pluck your apples when their background color is no longer green.
Different apple varieties mature at different times, so the harvest season can stretch from August to October.
At this point, the stem should part readily from the branch when the fruit is cupped in the palm of your hand and given a slight twist around, then up.
If the apple is overripe and soft, use for cooking!
Apples keep well for about six months at temperatures between 32 and 45 degrees F.

Apricot tree Planting Instructions

Ministry of AgricultureHome Garden Factsheets
Apricots in your garden

Planting Site
Apricots are the first fruit trees to bloom in the spring and because of this they are susceptible to spring frost damage. Plant apricot trees in spots where spring frosts are rare. Apricots can be grown where peaches will grow. Apricot trees are reasonably winter hardy, but not so hardy as apples. Plant in well-drained soils. Apricots do not like "wet feet."

Varieties
GOLDRICH Requires cross pollination. Developed by Washington State University. Fruit is attractive. Large, orange-yellow waxy skin color. Orange flesh. Fruit quality is good when fully mature. Matures in late July.
GOLDBAR Requires cross pollination. A new variety from Washington State. Fruit is large, high quality, orange with some red blush. Not winter hardy.
GOLDSTRIKE Requires cross pollination. A new variety from Washington State. Large sized fruit, orange with some red blush, firm.
HARGRAND A large, juicy, good flavored variety developed in Ontario. Also Harglow, Harlayne, and Harogem.
PERFECTION Needs cross pollination. Very large fruit. Orange skin and flesh. Good quality and flavor. Ripens last week of July. Very frost tender.
PUI-SHA-SIN Chinese variety introduced by the Summerland Research Station. Very large fruit. Early blooming and early maturing. Excellent flavor. Fruit has tender skin.
RELIABLE Requires cross pollination. Medium sized fruit. Good for fresh eating and processing. Has been grown locally for several years. Moderately frost hardy.
RIVAL Requires cross pollination. Fruit is yellow with rosy cheeks. Large sized, orange flesh. Tree is winter hardy, blooms early. Developed by Washington State University.
SKAHA Developed at the Summerland Research Station. Large, firm, bright orange when mature. Fruit has red blush, attractive. Ripens in the third week of July. Moderately frost tender.
SUNDROP Requires cross pollination. Developed at the Summerland Research Station. Don't pick too early or flavor will be flat. Fruit, medium sized, bright orange, attractive. Ripens in the third week of July. Moderately frost hardy.
TILTON Small to medium sized fruit. Yellow skin with red blush, good flavor, excellent for canning and drying. Ripens mid-August. Moderately frost tender.
TOMCAT Partially self fruitful. Fruit ripens 3-4 days earlier than Goldstrike. Fruit is creamy yellow with no blush. It's more flavorful than Goldstrike or Goldbar, but fruit is smaller. Tree is not winter hardy, but is productive.
WENATCHEE MOORPARK Usually called MOORPARK. Yellow skin and flesh. Large fruit, good flavor. Use fresh, dried or canned. Heavy and regular croppings. Ripens early August. Frost tender. Splits easily. Has green shoulders.

Planting
Apricot trees grow to become relatively large. An area with a minimum diameter of 25 ft. (7.6 meters) should be allowed. Select a well grown one or two year old tree from the nursery. Two year old trees should have at least four of five well-spaced branches, with a good root system. The usual practice is to plant early in the spring, but planting can be completed in the fall when weather conditions are good and the soil is moist.

Prepare a hole slightly larger than the root spread. Trim off any broken roots before planting. If the tree is in a plastic pot, remove the pot. If it comes in a fiber pot, you can slit the sides and plant with the pot or remove the pot. Sprinkle a handful of bone meal (phosphorus) in the bottom of the hole to help the root system get established. Place the tree in the hole. Mix in some peat moss or compost with the planting soil. Replace the soil in the hole, treading the soil firmly around the roots to ensure that the tree is securely anchored in the ground. Give the tree a good watering. An area of about 4 ft. in diameter (1.2 meters) should be kept free of weeds or lawn grass during the early stages of growth. Organic or plastic mulches can also be used to suppress weed growth around the tree.

Pruning
At planting time cut a one year old tree back to a height of 33 to 36 inches (82.5-90 cm). If a two year old tree is planted, reduce the branches to four well spaced shoots and shorten each one by one third. Apricots are usually grown as open center trees with the central leader removed. Aim to develop a framework of well-spaced branches that are capable or bearing heavy crops without breaking. In subsequent years build up the framework branches and cut out the entire shoots that are crowded or crossing into the center of the tree. Narrow angled crotches should be avoided as these are sources of weakness. Because apricot trees can grow to be large, in later years it may be necessary to cut or head back limbs in order to encourage more growth in the lower parts of the tree. Always cut back to a lateral or side growing branch.

Soil and Fertilizer
Soils in the Southern Interior are chronically low in organic matter and nitrogen. Minor elements such as magnesium, boron, and zinc may be low as well. If good weed control is practiced, no fertilizer should be required for the first two or three years. When the tree starts to crop, apply one ounce (28 grams) of a complete fertilizer such as 12-16-12 (which contains minor elements) per square yard (0.8 sq. meters) in the fall. In mature trees the aim is to get 15 inches (38 cm) of new growth every year. Nutrients can also be applied as foliar sprays in early summer. Organic growers should use approved sources of organic nutrients.

Thinning
If the tree sets a heavy crop and no thinning is done, the fruit will be small at harvest time. Thus, removal of part of the crop is necessary. To do this, space the fruits about 1 - 2 inches (3.8 - 5 cm) apart. Early thinning results in more uniform ripening. Fruit on well-thinned trees will ripen several days earlier than on poorly or unthinned trees. There will still be mixed maturities, even on well thinned trees, so more than one pick may be necessary. Heat greatly accelerates maturity.

Harvesting
Apricots must mature on the tree but they can ripen either on or off the tree. If left until they are good to eat, they will bruise very easily with picking and transport. Background color is used as a guide for harvest maturity.