What causes apples to be small?

It is apple harvest season, and many fruit growers find that their apples are small and do not grow large, which has a huge impact on yield and seriously damages the economic interests of growers. So what causes small apples? Let's take a look.

1. Excessive fertilization

A normal apple generally weighs around 200 grams, but some fruit growers apply excessive fertilizer during cultivation, which can easily cause the plant to produce a relatively large number of flowers during the budding stage. If flower and fruit thinning and light are not handled in time afterward, it is very easy for the fruit to cause excessive nutrient consumption in the tree during the swelling stage. The tree's absorption cannot keep up with the plant's consumption at all, and in the end this leads to flower and fruit drop and small fruit.

2. Impact of pests and diseases

During growth, fruit will inevitably suffer from pests and diseases. If apple growers do not pay attention to daily pruning, and the orchard environment is closed and humid, then bacteria and pests will break out in large numbers. For example, red spider mites and little leaf disease will cause great harm to apple leaves, and in severe cases cause leaves to fall off, affecting the plant's normal nutrient supply. All of these will have a certain impact on the formation of small apples.

3. Fertilizer misuse

When fertilizing apples, the quality of the fertilizer application method plays a very large role, and fertilizer misuse here refers to an imbalance of various nutrients. Orchard fertilization should emphasize balanced fertilization. It is necessary both to supplement major elements and to pay attention to the supply of minor and trace elements, so as to ensure yield and quality. If a large amount of nitrogen fertilizer is usually applied, it will cause the plant to grow excessively, and branch growth and fruit swelling will compete for nutrients, resulting in small fruit and poor color. In addition, applying too much nitrogen fertilizer before harvest will also affect the plant's stored nutrients. Although it will not affect the yield of the current year, it will have a serious impact on the growth of the fruit trees the following year.

4. Climatic impact

In some areas, climatic factors often cause apples to be generally small. During the apple ripening period, a continuous month of rainy weather means the leaves cannot carry out photosynthesis, the tree's nutrients are depleted, and the tree has very few nutrients, which seriously affects cell formation after flowering the following year, causing apples to be generally smaller.

  The above is an introduction to the causes of small apples. I hope it can help you. If you want to learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.