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Basic Fruit Tree Pruning �and Training�

Steve & Sarah Masterman

907-457-3792�Alaskafruits@gmail.com

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What is Pruning?

  • Selectively removing parts of a tree.

�Why Prune?

  • More open tree structure also means more air circulation and less disease.
  • More sunlight penetration = more and better fruit
  • Makes for a more attractive tree
  • Encourages fruit production
  • Rejuvenates old or overgrown trees
  • Controls tree height
  • Provides scionwood��

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Pruning Styles

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Decide on style of tree desired - or let the tree decide.

Think about how you want the mature tree to be in 20 years.

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Open Center

Central Leader

Modified Leader

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Central Leader

  • Whorl of branches every 2-3’
  • 3-4 branches in a whorl
  • Conical shape allows sunlight penetration

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Open Center

  • Pruned to be shorter trees (generally)
  • Open center lets the light penetrate to the fruit
  • Multiple “leaders”
  • Protects against leader loss
  • Often easier to pick

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Spring Pruning

Spring - when nutrients are in the roots -

Around snow melt.

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    • Remove 3 Ds (dead, diseased, damaged)
    • Remove watersprouts.
    • Think about overall shape of tree, and goals.
    • Remove growth into center of tree.
    • Remove crossing branches.
    • Where branches are too close together, make choices.
    • Remove or lift drooping branches.
    • Consider crotch angles.
    • Thin fruiting spurs.
    • Shorten to strengthen branches �or induce additional branching (heading cuts).

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Crotch angles and limb orientations

  • Radial branches
  • Branch spacing
  • Crotch angles
    • Wide crotch angles are stronger

- spread those limbs!!

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Plant Response to Pruning

Heading Cuts

    • Tree topping
    • Shortening branches
    • Fruit Spur development

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Thinning Cuts - remove branches

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Pruning one-year-old wood

    • Invigorates vegetative growth
    • Initiates branching below cut

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Pruning older wood

    • Limits vegetative growth
    • Topping a tree for height

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Pruning to a bud – a very useful heading cut.

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Summer and Fall Pruning

Summer - when nutrients are in the the limbs and leaves:

    • Late summer pruning of watersprouts can form fruit spurs.
    • Can slow overall growth by removing nutrients from the tree.
    • Can encourage branches to thicken.

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Fall

    • Getting the tree ready for winter.
    • Shorten branches to reduce snow load.

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Any Time

  • remove dead or diseased wood.

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Thinning cuts

Cut off the branch, leave the collar behind.��

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A CAUTION

Removing large branches

Do not remove more than a quarter to a third of the tree in any one year. ��Spread major renovation of trees over multiple years. ��Dead wood doesn’t count - it isn’t part of the growing tree.

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Year 1

3’

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Year 2

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Year 3

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What is Training?

Directing tree growth by selective pruning and by positioning branches.����

Best done when

the sap is flowing.

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Once a new ring of

wood is formed

the new position

is set. Training can be

removed

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Timing

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Training Methods

  • Clothes pins
  • Sticks
  • Weights
  • Strings
  • Wires
  • stand there and hold it for

a very long time

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Plant response to Training

  • Flatter branches fruit more.

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  • Flatter branches may have �more watersprouts.

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  • Flatter branches grow more slowly than upright branches.

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  • Opening up tree framework -> more fruit, healthier tree.�
  • Think about the variety’s typical form when pruning and training.

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Timing of removing training

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Spring Pruning - a refresher

Spring - when nutrients are in the roots -

Around snow melt.

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    • Remove 4 Ds (dead, dying, diseased, damaged)
    • Remove watersprouts.
    • Think about overall shape of tree, and goals.
    • Remove growth into center of tree.
    • Remove crossing branches.
    • Where branches are too close together, make choices.
    • Remove or lift drooping branches.
    • Consider crotch angles.
    • Thin fruiting spurs.
    • Shorten to strengthen branches �or induce additional branching (heading cuts).

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Hygiene

Tool Cleaning: Clean your tools with alcohol or bleach between trees.

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  • Coating cuts may prevent disease – but may slow healing.
  • Use clean and sharp pruning shears

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Throw away or burn diseased material.

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Let’s go prune!

BE NOT AFRAID!

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�Trees forgive and grow back.��There is no one perfect way to prune a tree. ��You just need to start.

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  • Be able to throw hat through the tree
  • Continue to cut out the center
  • Allow light to fully penetrate

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Unnecessary Slide?

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A real world example

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Protection & Readying for Winter

  • Protect from moose best you can
    • Fences
    • Concrete-wire enclosure
  • Protect against weed whackers
  • Protect against voles, rabbits etc
    • Hardware cloth
    • Spiral guards
    • Raise low hanging limbs
    • Do not bury in leaves or straw – this attracts voles

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Spiral Tree Guard (Voles)

Hardware Cloth

(Voles)

Wrap Around

(weed whackers)

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Winter Sun Scald

  • Sap rises on warm days, freezes during cold nights,
  • Kill and splits bark on south side of tree
  • Sunny locations – pros and cons
  • Sunscald prevention
    • Paint trunks white
    • Shade trunks

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  • Fence 7 1/2’ tall
  • Plant trees on ranetka 12’ apart
  • On baccata 10’ apart
  • Plums & pears 8-10’ apart

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Commercial Orchards

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Pruning Tools

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Espalier Trees – Unnecessary slide?

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Prune to a single branch

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Top at 36” to promote branching

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Year 4 – Unnecessary slide?

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Train and prune to get better fruit by allowing sunlight to evenly and fully penetrate the tree.

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Remove all the watersprouts –

They make good scionwood