Apple Tree Pruned Too Hard?

[FiveHoursSleep]

We have a 50-60 yo apple tree in our garden and every year it has given us loads of cooking apples.
Last year, once it had lost all its leaves we had it pruned by our regular gardeners who said they knew how to look after it.
Basically they have cut all the shoots back to the main branches and there is no sign of any new growth at all, so I'm wondering if this was the right thing to do?
I'm hoping we haven't killed the poor old thing as it's a fantastic place to sit in the summer.

[funnyperson]

Its still a bit early for new growth.
You will know next year really.
That said,
Mum's gardener killed off most of her apple trees, a cherry tree, the rhodedendrons and 2 magnolias as well as the lavender walk by their expert pruning.

[lk26]

Apple trees should be pruned when it's cold. I usually do them December or Jan.
Probably is a bit early for new growth yet so fingers crossed.

[FiveHoursSleep]

Thanks for the reassurance.
We've been stung once by door knockers who just lopped off branches willy nilly until I stopped them and sent them away, so I was really hoping our gardeners knew what they were doing.
When should I start to panic if there is no new growth? May? July? I guess there will be no apples this year anyhow :(

[shovetheholly]

Bear in mind that deciduous trees need the leaves to produce enough energy to grow, and we're a way off that yet (at least in my part of the world). My apple tree, pruned in January, shows absolutely no sign of any growth yet, but I know it'll shoot into life in a month or so.

Can you post a picture of the tree? Apples are supposed to have a really open shape, a bit like a bowl, so taking out a fair bit of growth may not have been the wrong thing to do. This openness allows the air and light in to circulate. We have a very vigorous tree in our garden that is a tiny bit older than yours, and this winter we took out almost 1/3 of the branches, because last year the canopy was far too dense and the tree suffered from mildew as a result.

Also, there are two types of twig on most apples: one that is fruit-bearing, and one that is just non-productive vegetative growth. Pruning out the latter helps the tree, but it can look like a lot of material has been taken out. My tree produces a lot of messy vegetative shoots, which I have to spend ages cutting out to get it to focus on fruit. You can read more about which parts of the tree will fruit here: www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=537.

Also, many apples are biennial, so they'll crop heavily one year and then not so well the next. So if you had a great year last year, and then less of a crop this year, it might be the tree and not the pruning.