Caught me right here ...Once you start 'cleaning up' the orchard, raking and pruning... there will be less places for 'the bugs' to over-winter / hide. You've time to learn what's attacking the fruit, fruit returns. If something was boring into the trees - that's different! ...and I'm still waiting for any coddling moth suggestions... But like nearly anything - you can always search the net!

If the trees have been pruned, great! You can usually look at their most leggy growth and follow it back to a main 'scaffold limb.' Saw it there. The trees are likely out of balance with all that un-checked growth, and after pruning them they'll send up lots and lots of 'water sucker' shoots the following spring. But those are easy to recognize and snap or snip off, either while growing or while dormant pruning. I'd love to climb into one of those trees, and for neighbors, I have. Is that crazy or what? They sound perfect for renovation and should turn into works of art. You might, as time allows, search back within our topics here ... lots of good info and suggestions, and in my case - I wouldn't be repeating myself.

And maybe someone around here's also familiar with those "slits or slashes" on your Golden russets..? Some apples will 'crack,' but I'd best not confuse either of us with my first guess.

And you're in love with your orchard... I know the feeling … it's making me smile, they become like children.

"Is grafting difficult should it only be left to an expert?" -- There are definitely techniques, but many around here have done it. We've all got recommendations, and if you get the desire to try it, let us know. What you have going are some excellent opportunities to learn. I suspect there will be apples of some variety you don't care for, thus you can saw off a limb, split it with an old knife, insert the 'scions' (different type of apple) and seal it up. It's like the next step in orchard care - orchard manipulation! And it's addictive! There's also a lot of good info online that shows and describes grafting; you'd likely be most interested in "Top working" existing trees. ...But you've plenty of time for that...

One note on pruning; since your trees are out of balance (too much upward growth in comparison to fruiting wood), ‘it's been described’ that taking off that newer growth while it still has leaves keeps the tree from adding to it root storage this winter. Tricky concept, but if you were to begin your 'salvage' work while the leaves were still on the trees: it shouldn't damage them, would let you get the jump on controlling them, and would actually help 'balance' them out so they wouldn't send up as many water-suckers next year (because you limited their nutrient store). I'd work on the most vigorous trees first, and by the time you got to the 'smaller trees,' it will be winter - and time to prune. …You're up North ... you might only remove the largest ‘straight up’ limbs back to their 'outward' branches, and save the 'fine pruning' till closer to Spring. More confused? Let me know... and, you're welcome.

This is fun "So do you think i should start with prunning back the water suckers this season?" -- I've learned you can 'remove' water suckers any season! The only reason I don't go at it now is that its hard to avoid tearing up 'good' leaves and knocking off fruit... but if you haven't much fruit, I don't see why you couldn't get started. Now, there is such a thing as sunscald, where too direct sunlight can damage the newly exposed bark on the topside of scaffold limbs. I've had that happen after removing decades of moss, about 3 inches thick, from the top of such limbs on much older trees. ... But it's nearly September, and you're further north... I'd start the process.

"You said: "by the time you got to the 'smaller trees,' it will be winter - and time to prune". … Do you mean prune in the winter before the snow flys or after winter before the leaves start to come out?" -- I was thinking about winter 'around here,' we can generally prune anytime, and some years we'll never see snow But the main reason for holding off on your 'fine pruning' until early spring is took keep the buds you're aiming (with the fresh cut right next to them) from being killed by cold. If you were to have serious dieback after pruning, who knows where the surviving buds would head. And, you never want dead wood in the trees, especially the multitude of little stubs you'd have on the tree tips. My suggestion was to begin removing the obviously overgrown portions on the most vigorous trees now, and leave the fine, or 'bud-aiming' cuts to late winter (after snow).

You can, and should remove dead wood any time. And I've learned there's no reason to paint over the 'wound.' Sealing compounds only trap moisture against the wound; nature will likely grow right around it.

"can i upload pics in posts?" -- Yes, but don't ask me how... actually, linking them to somewhere like photobucket works, just don't choose the largest formant or they spread our page too wide to comfortably read.

I believe there's a calcium deficiency responsible for cracks in the 'Cox Orange Pippin,' or russeting varieties; you might search that?

Good idea on the organic orchard connection, that's the direction most of us lean.

...And you're hooked! Excellent! But do search around for some fruit growing organizations near you, unfortunately (or fortunately), a lot of diseases are specific to regions; techniques, spray timing, and pruning too. But don't forget to keep us informed, and grafting's pretty-much grafting, but a hobby of mine " title="Wink" />