To ensure he althy plant growth and an abundant harvest in our orchard, we should regularly, annuallypruning fruit trees and shrubsProper pruning is to eliminate unwanted shoots and branches that interfere with growth plants or for some reason bear no fruit. By cutting, we can give young plants the desired shapes and stimulate the growth of new, strong shoots. In this article, we discussBasic Cutting Principles
Cutting fruit trees and shrubs. Cut thicker branches with a garden saw
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Dates for cutting fruit trees
Pruning of fruit treescan be performed on two dates:
- in the dormant period - winter cutting,
- in the growing season - summer cutting.
Winter cutting of fruit treeswe can start from February, as long as we are sure that the period of severe frost is over, and then continue it until April. We start with cutting the species that are the least sensitive to frost damage, and we postpone the cutting of the more sensitive species until spring.
We are the first to cut apple trees and cut pear trees. A little later, prune the plums, apricots, peaches and nectarines. Winter pruning is recommended rather for young stone trees, for older stone trees the summer is more appropriate, as it will reduce the risk of disease infections.
For this reason, we only perform summer pruning of fruit trees in species such as cherries, which are most susceptible to bark and wood diseases. These trees are pruned right after the fruit is harvestedThe best time to cut cherries is from the end of July to mid-August.
Cut the branches growing vertically upwards and crossing with others
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Winter pruning of trees should be moderateso as not to cause the trees to grow too vigorously and not to cause too much risk of disease infections. As a result of this pruning, mainly in apple trees, numerous wolves may appear, which will be removed in the summer.
As you can see,fruit trees, depending on the species, are pruned at the end of winter or spring and then in summerAs a rule, it is not recommended to prune fruit trees in the fall, because pruning wounds will not heal before winter and may become a source of frost for the plant. "
Technique for cutting fruit trees
Cutting young trees , well-nourished, vigorously growing and beginning to bear fruit, inhibits their growth.Therefore, the cutting of young fruit trees is limited only to their formation and crown shaping. First of all, we cut out dead, damaged and growing twigs inside the crown instead of outside, so that they intersect with the neighboring twigs.
We approach the issue ofcutting older treestrees that are several years old and older, especially apple trees, pear trees and cherries, which require strong pruning. Especially if they have not been cut since planting. Unfortunately, such trees can be found on plots of land.
Cutting old fruit treescan be divided into two stages:
- Cutting thick branches,
- Cutting finer branches.
Step 1 - cut the boughsX-raying old, neglected trees is usually started by removing a few thicker branches of the crown in order to provide sunlight to its center.Sometimes it is necessary to remove the entire top of the tree to lower the crown height. Lower trees are easier to protect against diseases and pests, it is more convenient to carry out all the care treatments and harvest fruits from them.
First, cut the thick boughs of the branches to expose the tree crown
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Step 2 - cutting thinner branchesAfter cutting a few branches, proceed to thinning the remaining branches. We cut out the branches lying close to each other and shading each other, crossing and rubbing, and growing to the center of the crown. Don't worry if the crown trimmed this way seems too thin - after new leaves and growths appear in the summer months, it will quickly become dense enough.
Thinner branches are cut with pruning shears. A stick with attached wire bent into a hook will also be useful, which will allow bending down branches that are too high
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Where to cut the branches?
Correct cutting has a significant impact on the speed of wound healing and reducing the risk of disease infection.The cut surface should be as smooth as possible . Therefore, you should choose a different technique for cutting branches and a different one for thinner shoots:
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- The branches should be cut just behind the ring(the place of the epiphyseal thickening) or right after the bifurcation. Cutting too far from these places leaves behind a dying stump that will have to be cut in the future anyway. "
We cut the branches just behind the wedding ring or the fork so as not to leave any dying stumps
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- The shoots are shortened just behind the he althy budso that the cut surface is inclined towards its base at an angle of 45 °. At the same time, it should be remembered that new branches will grow in the direction from which the bud grows.Thereforeavoid cutting over the buds pointing towards the inside of the crownto avoid sprigs sprouting, which will interfere with others in the future, and overly thicken the tree crown.
Good: cut the shoots over a he althy bud at an angle of 45 °
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Wrong: cutting too far from the bifurcation - the end of the shoot dies
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Select the tool for the type of cuts
The quality of the cuts made largely depends on the selection of appropriate tools. And it is not about buying expensive or well-known manufacturers' tools. Because that's not the point at all. It is aboutselecting the type and functionality of the tool according to the nature of our work :- Thin branches of young trees and shrubs(up to about 2.5 cm in diameter) can be trimmed with a hand pruner.
- For cutting thicker branches up to 4 cm in diameterchoose a two-handed pruner. The most robust two-handed secateurs with extended arms can cut branches up to 5 cm in diameter.
Two-handed secateurs for cutting thicker and higher branches
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- Choosing a secateurs is also a decision about a scissor or anvil cutting systemAnvil secateurs allow you to save some energy during work, but it should only cut hard, woody branches. It will therefore be perfect for cutting trees in winter. The scissor secateurs will be useful when cutting soft, green twigs and fresh growths. It will work perfectly during summer pruning, and also when you want to cut the entire branch right next to the branch.
- If you want to cut even thicker branches, you absolutely have to choose asaw. Horticultural saws with a curved blade are the best. fox tail, which allows for a better distribution of forces and a more precise cut.
Good to know
Correctsawing techniqueis very important. First saw a thick branch from below, and then saw it from above. In this way, we will prevent breaking off branches and stripping off the bark.
- For cutting taller trees, it is worth preparing telescopic handles , which allow you to cut without stepping on a ladder. An example is the ZM-V3 Wolf Garten telescopic handle, which unfolds to a length of 3 m. The Power Cut Saw 370 handsaw and the mulit-star® rope shears can be connected to it. With this set you can easily trim trees up to 4 meters high.
Wolf-Garten saw mounted on a long shank allows cutting without a ladder
Fig. Wolf-Garten
Protection of wounds after cutting
Important!In order to prevent diseases from penetrating the wound site after cutting, we only cut the cut on dry and sunny days, when the air temperature exceeds 0 ° C . Brush the wounds with garden flour immediately after cutting.
Funaben Plus 03 PA is one of the most commonly used ointments to lubricate wounds caused by pruning fruit trees . Wounds on apple and pear trees can also be covered with white emulsion paint with the addition of Topsin M 500 SC fungicide. For the lubrication of wounds on stone trees, we should also add Miedzian 50 WP, which, apart from its fungicidal effect, also has an antibacterial effect. These treatments will speed up the healing of wounds, protect them from drying out, moisture and, above all, against diseases.
Cutting fruit trees and shrubs - all cutting wounds must be covered with garden ointment with fungicide
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Cutting fruit bushes
While we can delay tree cutting until the spring date, we should not delay trimming currant, gooseberry, raspberry and blueberry bushes.The method of cuttingfruit bushesdepends on whether the fruit is produced on one-year old shoots, on older wood and short shoots, or on both.
Pruning currants and gooseberriesCurrants bear fruit on the last year's and several-year-old shoots, therefore we cut out all old shoots, more than three years old, and weak shoots directed downwards. After winter pruning, each currant bush should consist of one-third of last year's three or four shoots.
Gooseberry cuts like currants. As the shoots of many gooseberry varieties tend to crease over the ground, to prevent this from happening, prune them above the shoot pointing upwards.
Cutting raspberries and blackberries
In the cultivation of fruit-bearing raspberries in the summer, after harvesting, all fruit-bearing shoots are cut right next to the ground. At the end of winter, cut the shoots of raspberries that repeat fruiting, close to the ground. New shoots will grow that will bear fruit in the summer.
Blackberry fruits are formed on annual shoots, so it is good to keep them separate from younger ones. After harvesting, the fruiting shoots, just like in the case of raspberries, should be pruned just above the ground.Blueberry cut
Highbush blueberry, in turn, bears fruit on 2 or 3-year-old shoots. Young shrubs require a slight pruning for 3 years, limited to cutting weak and dead shoots. Later, cut the blueberry bushes in such a way as to stimulate the growth of young shoots at the base of the bush, cutting out a certain number of older shoots every year.
Become confident in pruning fruit plants
"If you are unsure how to make a cut or are just afraid to do it, the fantastic book "Cutting School 2" ontrimming fruit trees and shrubs
This is the second part of the best-selling book "Cutting School", in which the authors Lucyna and Alicja Grabowskieexplained in a simple and clear way the secrets of cuttingornamental plants.The first book The School of Cutting for its simple language and clear, accurate drawings was loved by garden owners all over Poland.The book quickly became a bestseller- 20,000 copies sold! "
"Cutting School 2" will make youconfident in pruning fruit trees and shrubsand learn to cut plants so that they grow according to your expectations and bear fruit abundantly. After reading this book, your approach to pruning plants will probably change completely!
