I have a food plot with 6 apple trees. The last 2 years I got a handful of apples because we had a hard freeze when they blossomed. This year the trees are making up for it. I have so many apples that the trees are drooping already. I braced up some limbs yesterday. The apples are marble to ping pong ball size at this point. I'm thinking of picking some now to relieve stress on the trees and maybe the remainder will grow bigger? Is that a good idea or are there better alternatives?

I’ve had trees ruined from to many apples.You can thin to a apple every 6 inches and yes you will have bigger apples.

Definitely thin them. Leave one apple every 8 to 12 inches. If allowed to overbear, the trees can go into an every other year cycle.

early pruning to reduce available node space to make fewer bigger apples

being they are food plot I would brace what you can and trim heavy for next year once they have dropped

once you have an established tree even if you break a limb you can cut it back as long as your trunk remains in-tacked ans strong

Mast crops are normal

Thin the apples to avoid breakage

Mast crops occur and don't cause anything. Usually next year you'll have few apples

Thin the apples leaving only the king fruit. They are already larger than the others.

I thin apples as much as possible. I have standard trees and the higher stuff I can no longer get to. We plant bare root 9 foot trees. The first couple years we pick all apples. Until they cannot be reached we thin all the clusters and limit the younger trees growth. Yes it will promote larger fruit and not harm the tree. We have 30 apple, 3 plum, 3 pear trees. (my wife's archery area, 3 over 135" the last 4 years) Just sprayed for the second time, we prune after freeze up December and January most often if possible.

Are there good food uses for imature smaller apples and if so what might those be?

Bryce

Yeah, I eat them. I love green apples. Daddy used to threaten to whip my tail for eating his jelly apples, lol.

I was thinking like candied apples or sauce etc. and especially if they have some tang to them.

There are a couple that are growing on my trap line and I bet if I took some early the later ones would be nicer. These are totally unattended so they face all the issues that apple trees deal with.
Bryce

Mom made a good Green Apple pie with unripe apples.
Sugar sweet and green apple tart..
Of course the apples had to be big enough to warrant peeling.

https://www.ruralsprout.com/windfall-apple-uses/

Thanks guys. I will be thinning apples tomorrow.

Our trees are loaded too and I will thin out some of the apples soon.

Chris