Is this Apple Scap or something else as no black spots

Icarium

hello all

Please see the photos. Can anyone hazard a good opinion as to what’s occuring on my apple tree and possible cures which I could apply. Think had this last year but only small crop as I had to transplant tree so was really in recovery mode then. This year a good crop cometh but a problem with it.  I’m not sure of the variety as comes from an old 18th century orchard which my garden is a small part off. It’s a miniature tree and apples are golf ball size roughly when ripe, particularly reddish and have to say are delicious.  Back on topic any help would be appreciated. Leaves plucked today. Many thanks. 

pansyface

Over the years, I have seen this problem on my apple trees.

I don’t know what causes it but it doesn't seem to affect the tree very much and I just ignore it.

New leaves grow and life carries on.🙂

Icarium

Thanks thanks for that. As I insinuated think it was present last year but crop wasn’t well or large anyway so was a bit Blaise probably. Do you apply anything or do any general maintenance to  your apple tree at all, which you would advise should be done?
many thanks

pansyface

I have sixteen apple trees, ranging in size from about 7 metres to about 1 metre tall. Some are growing in very, very large perforated plastic buckets, some are in flower beds and some are growing in meadow grass with a 1-metre diameter “hole” cut out of the grass.

The ones in buckets are on dwarf rootstock and, like all apples on dwarf rootstock, they get a lot more food and water and generally cossetting than the others. They are in buckets because I am anticipating having to move house sometime in the next few years and I want to be ready when that happens.

The large ones are too tall for me to do anything to them in the way of moving, pruning, spraying etc. even if I wanted to which, fortunately, I don’t.

The ones in the meadow just get the occasional tickle around their roots if the grass threatens to encroach but are left alone otherwise.

I’m not a great believer in pruning unless branches begin to cross the centre of the tree or to cross each other or get broken. 

All my apple trees are just grown as bush shapes. I have neither the time, the wall space or the inclination to train them into fancy shapes.😁