Strong wind, especially wind associated with tropical storms that saturate the soil, can cause fruit trees to lean and sometimes be totally uprooted. Due to small and brittle root systems, dwarfing rootstocks tend to be prone to wind damage.
Susceptibility to wind damage appears to be related to the combination of rootstock and scion cultivar. Some brittle cultivars, such as ‘Gala’ and ‘Golden Delicious’, when propagated on brittle rootstocks, such as G.30 or M.26, may snap at the bud union. …