Handbook of Nature-Study · Lesson CXCIX · Topic 29: The apple tree
199. The apple tree
Goal: Your child can describe an apple tree and explain why a named apple variety is grown by grafting, not from seed.
You'll need
- An apple tree to visit (a yard, park or orchard)
- A ruler or tape measure
- A nature notebook and a pencil (colored pencils if you have them)
What's in the book
The lesson has a leading thought and sixteen observations: the tree's size, shape, bark, spray and leaves, its wood, then grafting, budding, nurseries, orchard care and pruning.
The lesson, step by step
When and where
Spring (in bloom) or autumn (in fruit). The book suggests a visit to a large, well-grown orchard, but any apple tree near at hand will do. Ask before entering an orchard, and don't climb.
The leading thought
The variety of the apple grown upon the tree is not determined by the kind of seed which is planted to produce the tree, but by the process of grafting or budding the young tree.
Look at the tree
How can you distinguish old apple trees from young ones at a glance?
Choose a tree for study: How thick is its trunk? What is the shape of its head?
Does the spray stand erect or is it gnarled and querly?
A leaf
Are the leaves opposite or alternate? Describe or sketch an apple leaf.
The big idea: grafting
Did this tree come from a seed borne in an apple of the same variety which it produces? What is the purpose of grafting a tree? What is a scion?
Explain in plain words: a seed from a Baldwin apple grows into a new, different kind of apple tree. To get more Baldwin trees, a grower takes a twig (the scion) from a Baldwin and joins it onto the trunk of a young tree, where it grows on as Baldwin.
Find the graft
On a young orchard tree, look near the ground for a bump or bend where the trunk changes slightly. That is often where the graft or bud was joined.
Nature notebook
Sketch the apple tree's shape and one leaf. Draw a simple picture of a twig (scion) fitted onto a stump (stock), with arrows and labels.
Answers to the book's problems
Old trees have thick, rough trunks and gnarled, spreading limbs. No: the tree did not come from a seed of the same variety; apple seeds grow into new kinds. Grafting keeps a good variety true. A scion is the twig of the chosen variety that is grafted onto the stock. Today many orchards grow small trees on special dwarfing roots.
Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.