when to prune fruit trees – Xtremehorticulture

Pruning Fruit Trees in Late Spring

Leave a Comment / can you prune during the summer, what is summer pruning, when to prune fruit trees / xtremehorticulture

Q. I have added some fruit trees such as Asian pear, peach and apricot to my yard. When is the best time for pruning these trees? A. The pruning of fruit trees is done for two separate reasons; establishing the architecture or structure of the tree and encourage the production of high quality fruit. There is even a third reason that is not talked about very often and that is helping to keep trees smaller. Winter pruning establishes the architecture of the tree. The most productive branches are at 45° angles. Prune at the Time of Planting. When purchasing a tree and its structure needs improvement, you should prune for improved structure immediately after planting and not wait until the end of the growing season. Prune in Winter Months. With established trees, major improvements to the architecture of an established tree that require a pruning saw or loppers should be done in the winter months. For deciduous fruit trees, it is much easier to see the architecture of the tree when the leaves are gone. Smaller changes in its structure requiring a hand pruners could be done anytime. Summer Pruning. I encourage summer pruning during the month of April and early May in our climate. Summer pruning focuses on removing aggressive vertical growth that has grown since spring. Sometimes we refer to this growth as “suckers” or “watersprouts”. Strong vertical growth can be removed very early in the season by pulling downward. This is called summer pruning and helps to reduce interior shading of the tree and improves fruit quality and production. It also helps to dwarf a tree by robbing it of its new growth. Summer pruning is used to reduce the interior shading of fruit trees which decreases production and helps keep the size of fruit trees smaller. It is also used to take away the future growth potential of a tree. When a tree is pushing new growth it is making an investment in the future. The tree is using stored food reserves for pushing new growth. That tree will recover the food reserves it used and more after its new growth has matured. Strong vertical growth is seldom fruitful in the short run. Strong vertical growth is used by the tree to gain height. This type of growth should be removed and is easy to do. Pulling downward on immature watersprouts will remove them cleanly and efficiently without using a pruning shears. If you wait too long this growth can no longer be removed by pulling. It must be cut off. This leaves stubs that will sprout in the future.

Pruning Fruit Trees in Late Spring Read More »

You Can Still Prune after New Growth Starts

Leave a Comment / How late can I prune fruit trees, when to prune fruit trees / xtremehorticulture

Q. Took your recommendation and planted a Dapple Dandy pluot and Santa Rosa plum in the same hole about 18 inches apart. New growth has already started to appear. What I’d like to do now is cut and lower the height of the Santa Rosa plum to the same height as the pluot. Is it too late to do that? Pluot and plum planted in the same hole. Santa Rosa plum is one of the best pollinators for Pluots. The fruit trees are whitewashed to help prevent sunburn. A. No, it is not too late to prune. People are mistaken when they think the only time to prune is during the winter months and when new growth appears, it is no longer permitted. This is a not correct. One of my professors used to say, “The best time to prune is when the pruners are sharp.” I still agree with him. However I would alter that by adding, “as long as it is a hand pruners.” If you are removing large diameter wood using a saw or loppers timing is more critical. In short, go ahead and lower the height of that pluot. Make sure you whitewash the upper surfaces of any exposed limbs to reduce sunburn unexposed branches. I will talk about summer pruning next month. I will post more about this topic on my blog.

You Can Still Prune after New Growth Starts Read More »

Pruning Peach Trees Now Might Lead Toward Disaster

1 Comment / summer pruning, when to prune fruit trees / xtremehorticulture

Q. Our Desert Rose peach tree is eight years old and finished harvesting for the year. We would like to know what branches, if any, we can trim now and not harm the tree or cut off all next years peaches. We have six to eight inch in length branches that come off small branches that have no leaves and appear dead, and we have other small branches that have a six to eight inch span in between leaves that we had peaches on both parts this year. We usually trim what we think is dead or excessive growth wood in January. We thinned the peaches really well, but we lost two, four to eight inch circumference branches this spring do in part to wind and the weight of the peaches. Any information you can provide is greatly appreciated. A. I don’t know the Desert Rose peach but should be no different than the others. Any time we are in the hot parts of the summer it is wise to be very careful when pruning. Pruning at this time should be light at best if at all. Right now we should be still pruning our fruit trees lightly, removing only new, young shoots that are too close together or shading the leaves too much. We’re cutting back or removing some of this year’s growth which has been too vigorous. Do not prune so much that you open the canopy and risk the possibility of sunburn on some of your major limbs. However, if the canopy is too dense then you should do some thinning of the canopy to allow some light to enter. If you need to determine if the canopy is too dense, look at the ground under the canopy. Remove NEW shoots anywhere in the canopy that are growing straight up or straight down. Remove enough so that you see speckled light on the ground through the canopy. Then stop. Removing too much can cause damage this time of year (June/July). The shadow of the canopy on the ground should be speckled with light. If it is a solid shadow, then a few small branches should be removed until you see speckling in the shadow. Only remove a few small branches to accomplish this. No more. Reserve the rest of your pruning for winter time when the leaves have dropped.

Pruning Peach Trees Now Might Lead Toward Disaster Read More »