Apple trees are among the most common garden crops, but for their successful fruiting, it is necessary to provide trees proper care... Pruning an apple tree carries many functions, which are determined by the age of the tree and the goals set. It can be carried out both to form a crown of the correct shape, and to increase the number of fruiting branches or to strengthen the young. In addition, pruning correctly will provide good sunlight access to the fruit and prepare the tree for winter.
Undoubtedly, pruning an apple tree is a whole science, it will be very difficult to comprehend all the nuances of which at once. It will take years of practice and, of course, the necessary knowledge base with which this article will arm you.
How to properly prune an apple tree
There is no doubt that the apple tree is the most popular and beloved fruit tree in our area, and its fruits, which have a variety of colors, sizes and tastes, are a bottomless well of vitamins.
Figure 1. Cropping according to age When correct organized care the apple tree can bear fruit effectively every year. Caring for this inhabitant orchard includes not only measures for feeding, loosening, weeding and watering, but also such an important procedure as pruning (Figure 1).
Scheme
There is a theoretically grounded and practically proven technology for pruning an apple tree, which states that, first of all, when starting pruning, it is necessary to thin out the crown of the tree. This technique will help to quickly change its illumination and, accordingly, prevent possible mistakes to remove or shorten shoots (Figure 2).
Note: To thin out the crown, it is necessary to cut off over one of the branches upper part trunk with all the shoots extending from it. Only upon completion of this stage can you proceed to the actual trimming.
You should know that as a result of pruning, hemp should not remain, which dry out over time, and then begin to rot, turning into a hollow. Therefore, the most acceptable cut is the cut passing along the bead ring. Old trees are an exception due to age-related thinning of the bark. In such specimens, breaks and tears of the bark occur at the site of the cuts under the ring. Therefore, when cutting off old trees, you must first cut the branch a little further than the ring, forming a stump, and then remove the shoot by moving up the ring and applying a garden hacksaw from below.
Figure 2. Pruning schemes by age and crown type Remember that any kind of pruning must end with an antiseptic treatment of fresh wounds. If the garden is young, then this procedure is recommended to be carried out the next day after pruning. But the places of cuts of old and dry shoots should be processed immediately after the end of work.
Views
The existing types (techniques) of pruning depend on the age of the trees and include: formation, pruning for fruiting, as well as rejuvenation (Figure 3). A separate type of pruning is the removal of dead branches. Let's consider in more detail the features of each of these types.
Figure 3. The main types of trimming Formative pruning is most often done on young trees to shape the crown. After the crown is formed, pruning is applied for fruiting, which can be carried out for several years in a row, until the fruits begin to decrease in size. Finally, rejuvenation is applied to those trees that have stopped growing and their crown has begun to dry out.
Note: When removing dried branches, it is necessary to cut them down so that hollows do not form in their place. To this end, it is advised to first cut the branch to the place where the first bud appears, and then file the stump with a garden hacksaw with small teeth so that its direction goes towards the branch to be removed. Then do not forget to lubricate the cut with garden varnish.
In addition, depending on the volume of the removed branches or their parts, such types of pruning as shortening and thinning are distinguished. At the first type of pruning, young, but weak shoots are shortened. The second type involves the removal of branches under the ring and allows you to form a crown of the desired density.
Errors when pruning apple trees
Since the technology for pruning an apple tree is quite laborious and complex, it is not surprising that novice gardeners often make typical mistakes.
Let's take a closer look at some of them:
- It is a misconception that a fruit tree needs to be removed only once a year. Remember that a well-formed crown that is freed from excess or damaged shoots will bear fruit much better.
- Leaving stumps after cutting is also a fairly common mistake. To prevent it, you must remember that the cut must be done so that the tree has at least a partial opportunity to tighten the resulting wound with its own bark. The price of stumps is too high - the destruction of the bark around them, followed by the settlement of spores of fungi or harmful insects in the formed voids, leads to the weakening of the tree and the formation of a hollow, which, in turn, is the entrance gate for various infections.
- Unreasonable shortening of the shoots of young apple trees leads to the formation of several tops, which, overtaking in growth side shoots, will weaken them. Therefore, to expand the crown, it is not the shortening of the tops that is carried out, but the removal of the central conductor, or the bending of all vertical branches.
- Strong pruning stimulates increased growth when there is no main trunk, and all branches are equally equal and form a kind of bush.
Another common mistake is handling fresh slices. Remember that on a wet surface, the paint does not dry out, but, on the contrary, promotes wood rotting due to the lack of air. Therefore, it is recommended to wait a few days after cutting until the wound dries up, and only then treat its surface with a special solution or paint.
Apple pruning time
In addition to theoretical knowledge and practical skills in the process itself, it is necessary to know those specific terms in which it can be carried out. When choosing a term, not only the goals set are taken into account, but also the age of the tree, as well as the weather and climatic conditions of a particular area.
Note: For example, doing the formation of crowns young garden, you should know that all procedures should be carried out in March, before the start of sap flow. The next period may be autumn or winter.
But a more mature garden needs different types trimming, each of which has its own purpose. You should be aware that neglect of specific dates is often the reason for low yields or even death. fruit trees... Therefore, novice gardeners should not be ashamed to ask for advice from more experienced colleagues and not rush to carry out work, because some of them can be carried out only during certain periods.
Spring pruning
The plan for spring pruning of an apple tree depends on your goals. If the main task is to correctly form the crown, then you need to start by identifying the branches that were damaged in winter period, and if you are striving for a quick recovery of the tree after winter, then you should remove all old and unnecessary branches at an angle from the trunk (skeletal branch). An example of spring pruning is shown in Figure 4.
Figure 4. Features of pruning apple trees in spring It should be borne in mind that it is in the spring that the juice circulates most actively along the tree trunk, so all work should be done as carefully as possible so as not to harm the plant.
In details spring pruning apple trees are shown in the video.
Autumn pruning
All work related to the autumn cleaning of apple trees from excess branches should be completed before the onset of the first frost.
Algorithm autumn pruning such(Figure 5):
- Removal of large branches (broken and dry);
- Thinning of weak branches located close to each other;
- Cutting off branches growing at an acute angle;
- Processing of cut sites with garden varnish or oil paint.
Figure 5. Scheme of pruning a garden in autumn All cut material must be collected and removed so that it does not clog the space around the tree.
Pruning in winter
Winter pruning involves activities carried out in the garden in late autumn or very in early spring... The main condition of the procedure is the absence of active movement of the juice along the trunk of the plant. It is these conditions that develop after the leaves fall and before the buds swell.
Note: For this reason, winter pruning is not much different from autumn and spring pruning, although it has its own advantages.
Firstly, in winter the plant is definitely at rest, and secondly, winter time not so intensively saturated with work in the garden, and therefore the gardener has the opportunity to slowly and carefully perform everything necessary procedures to get in the future nice results... It is recommended to start by removing damaged branches, and then move on to work aimed at eliminating crown thickening. In this case, doubtful branches are cut off completely, since the buds are not yet visible. The only limitation for carrying out the procedure in winter is when the air temperature drops below -15 degrees, when the bark of trees becomes too vulnerable and fragile.
Summer pruning
In the summer, the tree is in an active growing season, so it is not recommended to carry out the procedure at this time. In addition, fresh cut wounds can attract all kinds of pests looking to lay their larvae. Therefore, it is permissible to carry out only light pruning in late May - early June, which will help get rid of competing shoots that form as an extension of skeletal branches.
Note: To do this, it is necessary to remove all weak shoots and keep the well-developed ones, which are located on the tops of last year. But for future skeletal ramifications, it is necessary to preserve shoots located several nodes below the current ones. All unnecessary must be removed.
To weaken or suspend the growth of shoots, the length of which is at least 15 cm, and on which there are already 5 or more developed leaves, they are pinched (pinched). If this procedure is not effective enough, it is repeated for each new branch, on which at least 3 leaves have formed. In addition to pinching, you can also resort to the bending method, which helps to accelerate the onset of fruiting.
However, in spite of everything possible risks, only summer pruning makes it possible to evaluate and correct the results of their work shortly after it has been carried out. In addition, in the summer it is easiest to determine the places of the greatest thickening of the crown and thin it out.
Pruning young apple trees
A young apple tree is pruned for the first time immediately after planting in order to give the crown the correct shape. And she, in turn, guarantees good fruiting in the future. And since the seedling is still very fragile and vulnerable, you should show the utmost care and caution when pruning, which is not particularly difficult, however, requires some experience and knowledge.
You should know that thin branches are cut with pruning shears, and coarser ones - with a garden saw. In this case, the tools must be well sharpened, since the young bark is especially vulnerable. For the same reason, the cut points can be processed only with oil paint and only after several days after the cutting procedure.
Crown pruning
The crown of a young apple tree is subject to formative pruning. It is very important to carry it out on time, since it will be extremely difficult to form the crown correctly further. The most the best option is the arrangement of branches in several tiers and a sparse crown. Such formative pruning of a young tree is carried out annually for 3-4 years, then the interval increases to once every two years.
Crown-forming pruning will not only enable the tree to develop fully, but will also improve its future yield. In addition, such a seedling will not need additional support, since its structure will be stable. To achieve this, it is recommended to form a base of 5-6 large branches, and shorten the central trunk branch. In this case, the height of the trunk should be from 40 to 50 cm.
After the crown of the apple tree has been correctly formed, a period of active fruiting begins. However, by the fifth year after planting, the growth of the tree begins to slow down, therefore, it becomes necessary to carry out a specific type of pruning, stimulating the formation of powerful shoots that can withstand a large number of fruits, the so-called overgrown branches. Strong pruning done in spring and summer will help achieve this result (Figure 6).
Figure 6. Scheme of pruning apple trees for fruiting Consider the essence of pruning for fruiting:
- In March-April of the first year, the one-year lateral growth is pruned into four buds. In the summer, 1-2 shoots from the apical buds will appear from it, and the lower growth ones will turn into flower ones.
- A year later, the lateral branch is pruned onto a flower bud.
- In the third year, the trimmed side branch will begin to bear fruit.
In the fourth year, the formation of overgrowing branches begins. Over time, they can become thickened, so they should be thinned out by removing the weak and located at the bottom of the branches.
Pruning old apple trees is carried out with a rejuvenating purpose, because the fruits are formed only on the upper branches, shading the lower ones. Therefore, it is necessary to unload the tree and provide conditions for the development of the lower branches (Figure 7).
Note: Unlike pruning young trees, you will have to apply not so much caution as physical strength, because you will have to remove not only branches, but also whole trunks, that is, everything that has become an unbearable burden for the tree. Begin by clearing the main branches and trunk of any inward-growing shoots that absorb vitality wood.
Thin the upper branches, thus improving their ventilation and illumination. Take note that a one-time such cleaning may not give the desired result, so it will have to be repeated for several years in a row until the tree comes to life. However, you should be aware that only a third of all branches can be deleted at one time. Violation of this norm will lead to the death of the fruit tree.
Pruning a running apple tree: video
It often happens that an old apple tree no longer bears fruit, but how nice it is to sit under its imposing canopy on a hot summer day or to have gatherings on a warm summer evening. And yet, taking up a lot of space in the garden, an old tree runs the risk of being put under the saw. Do not rush to be separated from your old and reliable friend, it is better to help him look a little younger. The neglected trees need to reduce the crown, which will not only increase the level of illumination in the lower and inner parts, but also contribute to better ventilation, which has a positive effect on the health of the apple tree.
Figure 7. Scheme of rejuvenating pruning of an old apple tree How to prune an old apple tree and thin out its crown correctly? To achieve the desired result, sawing out thick branches that grow upward, as well as the central branch, will help. The top is cut at a height of about 2 meters from the last thick branch from below, and their tops are cut off at the upper branches. The cutting point of the lower branches is where they begin their direction towards the ground. In addition to reducing the crown, it must be thinned out by removing lagging and damaged branches, as well as diseased, hanging, rubbing or crossed shoots, as well as branches that grow inside the crown. The old branches should be shortened, but the thick lower branches cannot be cut off, since the tree may die due to the large wounds formed.
Since pruning old apple trees is a rather painstaking business, we recommend that you read the video, which shows how to carry out this procedure correctly.
Pruning fruit trees in summer.
Techniques for the care and acceleration of fruiting of fruit trees.
In the last century, Professor Peter Genrikhovich Shitt developed a special type of summer pruning of fruit trees, thanks to which flower buds do not wake up so quickly during winter thaws and freeze less. It consists in a strong shortening of summer leafy shoots, and when there is no harvest - and even thicker branches. Produced at the end of May - June. After pruning fruit trees in the same summer, normally developed new growths appear by the end of August, flower buds have time to be laid on them with some delay. The latter are less responsive to thaws in the second half of winter.
Besides, in summer period on fruit trees, various operations are applied, which complement winter pruning of fruit trees, contribute to the formation of crowns, regulate the growth and fruiting of fruit trees. In addition to the summer pruning of fruit trees, this includes operations such as 
pinching, panning (pinching), inclination of branches of fruit trees.
With the help of these operations, the formation of crowns is facilitated and accelerated, the early maturity of fruit trees and the quality of the fruit increase, during this period the wounds heal better after pruning fruit trees.
In stone fruit species prone to gum leakage, summer pruning eliminates this hazard, unlike winter pruning of fruit trees.
But with a large number of advantages listed above, this operation has its disadvantages:
The foliage of the crowns decreases;
The development of fruit trees is weakened in comparison with winter pruning;
Yields may decrease;
Vegetation may be delayed.
However, nowadays, in the presence of very effective biostimulants 
growth, fruiting, anti-stress drugs such as Novosil, Immunocytofit, Zircon (Epin), as well as biofertilizers (Baikal EM1), the problem has been resolved. Therefore, it is recommended to apply summer pruning of fruit trees mainly as an addition to pruning carried out in the cold season. Especially effective summer pruning of peaches, since frequent freezing of flower buds in winter - spring leads to the loss of not only the harvest, but also the fruit trees themselves. Therefore, in the spring, in the flowering phase (if the buds are not frozen) or in the budding phase, light pruning of fruit trees is carried out, choosing dry, warm weather. And after setting the fruits, they begin the summer pruning of fruit trees, removing all the shoots growing inside the crown, as well as shoots that thicken the crown, on which there are no fruits that have set. The branches with fruits are shortened over the upper set fruits.
With such pruning of fruit trees, it is realistic to preserve all the remaining fruits. 
If the fruits are well set, then in order to obtain large, high-quality fruits, at the stage of “ green walnut»They must be thinned out at the moment of bone formation. Do not be “greedy”, help the tree to raise the harvest in this way.
If in the autumn - winter period, flower buds are damaged or during return spring frosts ovaries are ruined, it is recommended to shorten all overgrowing branches by the first 2 - 3 shoots, which will ensure the development of strong replacement branches from low-lying buds.
As for the summer pruning fruit trees apricot, then it is used to increase the winter hardiness of fruit buds. It should be remembered that the apricot quickly leaves a state of dormancy, therefore, it is quite often damaged by recurrent frosts.
Fruit buds of apricot, laid on the second wave of growth, in comparison with fruit buds on the main annual growth, will lag behind in development by two weeks. Consequently, they later come out of their dormant state and avoid damage from recurrent frost. 
Pruning shoots with a pruner current year More than 25 - 30 cm causes the emergence of new 2 - 3 increments of the second growth wave, on which flower buds are laid.
It must be remembered that this pruning of fruit trees, carried out in the period from May 20 to June 10, gives a positive effect on young, not yet fruiting trees, and even then in the first years of fruiting when combined with early spring pruning of fruit trees, i.e. only a combination of these two operations can give good results.
Summer pruning of fruit trees is desirable for young trees:
Cherries - to avoid ankle;
Large-fruited cherry plum - to create a strong skeleton, i.e. crowns;
Plums - to limit the strength of growth, the fastest entry into fruiting, it is no secret that plums come into fruiting late, in the 6th - 8th year, etc.
Summer pruning fruit trees are used to care for frozen trees, when it is difficult to establish the boundaries of the death of branches. 
Reschedule their pruning until the buds are fully open. In this operation, shorten the branches into less damaged lateral branches or overgrown fatty shoots.
Such techniques as pinching and pinching are close to pruning fruit trees in terms of their effect on shoots.
Stealing - breaking off excess green shoots at the beginning of their regrowth. This technique is akin to pruning fruit trees with thinning. Shoots that are useless to the tree and thicken the crown are best removed at the beginning of their development. Pulling out early shoots, compared to pruning fruit trees in winter, reduces your labor costs, the tree's waste of plastic materials, and wounds heal faster.
Panning - removal of the top of the growing shoot. It is usually performed with a fingernail, but when the deadline is missed, or the shoot has already become woody, or it is necessary to remove most of the shoot, then a garden knife or pruner is used.
Weak panning when removing the apex of the shoot with 2 - 3 undeveloped leaves, 
weakening the intensity of shoot growth, they delay it for 10 - 15 days, while due to the redistribution of nutrients, the nearby weak shoots will be strengthened.
With strong panning, the lateral buds below the cut awaken better and faster, they feed well and good lateral shoots are obtained. The germination of lateral buds mainly depends on the degree of excitability of the breed or variety.
The greatest excitability, i.e. Shoot-forming, have such breeds as peach, apricot, cherry plum, sweet cherry, certain varieties of plum (R. Altana, Hungarian Azhanskaya, Kuban legend), cherries (Achievement, Chernokorka). This is the basis for the use of summer operations to improve the condition of the named stone fruit breeds, increase their yield, i.e. to reduce the growth of a tree, but to enhance the process of laying flower buds.
There is a condition that amateur gardeners must observe: avoid pinching all the tops of the shoots at once, leave some of the unpinched ones, which will take on most of the nutrients, and this will reduce the formation 
premature shoots.
By pinching, you can turn any top into a fruit twig faster than with trees in the autumn-winter period. Cutting off the continuation shoots in the summer, when they reach the required length of 30 - 40 cm, but did not have time to complete the growth, i.e. until mid-June, you can cause the formation of branches of the next order in the same season. The same techniques are widely used in nurseries, using them in the formation of seedlings of fruit trees.
In most breeds and varieties, the axial shoot of a one-year-old seedling begins to form lateral branches already in the first weeks of growth, which suppress vertical growth. That is why it is possible to promptly remove all lower lateral ramifications in the trunk area. This operation is harmless to the plant - when they are broken out in a herbaceous state, without damaging the leaves, in the axils of which there are shoots.
Cherries, plums, cherry plums, which grow strongly in the nursery, escapes by the end of the season 
continuation with a good agricultural background grows up to 2 - 2.5 m. It is necessary to stop its growth at a height of 80 - 100 cm by removing the herbaceous top of this seedling at least 12 - 15 cm long, i.e. pinch the top until June 10 - 15. On such a plant, by the fall, a crown with good divergence angles will be laid.
Another technique that is very rarely used by amateur gardeners, but extremely necessary for serious gardening, is the tilt of the branches.
Branch slope - effective reception regulating the growth of branches. Their deviation from the vertical weakens the polarity, the progressive growth of the branches, and at the same time enhances the shoot-forming ability and fruiting of young trees.
Instead of removing or shortening strong shoots and branches, it is best to give them a more horizontal position, and give preference to weakly branched varieties.
By taking up the described methods of summer operations, you will significantly accelerate the formation of young fruit trees and their entry into fruiting, reduce the useless consumption of plastic substances by the tree and increase the productivity of trees.
Until I began to closely study the garden that my parents planted, I did not know anything about the need for summer pruning of fruit trees. I was even sure that trees are cut only in early spring or late autumn. But it turns out that pruning of fruit trees is necessary almost all year long. By the way, the formation of the crown is a creative process, so creative that once I got so carried away that some kind of slingshot turned out from my beloved apricot. So correct pruning it is a beautiful appearance garden, but not only ... The harvest also depends on this.
Of course, the main pruning operations are carried out in the garden in the spring and fall. And summer pruning of fruit trees is a "work" with green, non-lignified or young shoots, which have just begun to be covered with thin bark. Its purpose: firstly, it is necessary to thin out the crown so that it becomes evenly illuminated and sufficiently ventilated, and, secondly, to provide access to each branch when spraying trees from pests and diseases.
In the summer, mainly in June and early July, gardeners often use easily performed tree pruning operations - pinching, pinching, breaking, breaking, pruning. Let's consider each technique separately.
Pinching
This technique allows you to suspend the growth of shoots of the current year. In summer pruning, we remove (pinch) the top of a green twig with three to five leaves. Usually we do this when it is difficult in the summer to decide whether we will leave this branch in the fall-spring or not, to the place it will be here or not. After pinching, the growth of the branch stops for 1.5-2 weeks. The process can be repeated when the growth processes are resumed. We pinch vertically growing shoots or branches growing deeper into the crown.
It is difficult to accurately determine the timing of the summer pinching, they depend on the strength of growth, the age of the tree, and the conditions of detention. For example, in such fruit trees as peach, apricot, cherry plum, pinching is carried out in the first half of June (in early spring - at the end of May), when young shoots begin to grow actively.
What results should you expect from a summer pinch? This is the growth of shoots from the newly awakened buds, their timely ripening for winter.
Pinning
This pruning technique differs from pinching only in that we do not pinch off 3-5 leaves from the top of the branch, but, on the contrary, leave 3-5 leaves on the branch below. On this branch, from the upper leaf sinus begins to grow new escape, which we also pinch (cut), leaving 2-3 sheets. We carry out this operation on young branches that grow from large (uterine) branches.
What is achieved by summer pinning? Achieved complete formation of wood near the mother branch, which in turn accelerates, increases and improves fruit formation.
Breaking
Vertical shaggy shoots on cherry plum thicken the crown of the tree This is a very simple trick. Most often used on stone fruit trees. With its help, the best illumination of the crown is achieved, since herbaceous vertically growing shoots break out, which have no value for crown formation. By the way, the tree easily tolerates summer cutting, since the resulting wounds heal much faster than the cuts that need to be processed after the spring-autumn pruning.
Breakdown
A technique rarely used by gardeners, but it is very effective when you need to give shoots, which will later become branches, the desired direction of growth - downward or horizontally. By the way, the more horizontally the branch grows, the more harvest it has, the better it ripens. Keep this in mind when giving the branch a certain direction when it breaks. To do this, press your fingernail on the branch in the place of the fracture. thumb and flatten it, directing the lower part in the desired direction. In the place of the fracture, wound tissue is formed, which overgrows and fixes the shoot in the future.
By the way, you can break not only green shoots. 2-3 year old branches are suitable for this operation. If you notice that some branch is too long and it will be difficult to get the fruits from it, you can direct its growth horizontally or downward with a break. But you can't do with a fingernail. You will have to bend the branch carefully so that the bark on the top of the branch bursts, and the central part just bends, breaks slightly. In the future, the fracture will overgrow, and the position of the branch will be fixed as it should. To be honest, I broke more than one branch before I got the desired result. Still, the method of breaking lignified branches requires practical skills.
Pruning
This summer pruning technique is somewhat similar to pinching. Its purpose - it allows you to get flower buds at the base of the shoots in the year of their regrowth.
The essence of the technique: select the branches on the tree that are not needed for the formation of branches. It can even be vertically growing shoots. We cut them shortly almost to the base, but leaving two well-formed leaves. After 1.5-2 weeks, a new shoot sprouts from the upper bud on this stump with two leaves. We also cut it short. And a month later, a flower bud is formed in the leaf axil at the base of the shoot - this is the key to the future harvest.
Summer pruning technique - pruning - is interesting and quite effective, but in the case of a rainy summer, it will not bring the expected result. Frequent rains will result in not only the upper bud but also the lower second bud when pruning. In this case flower bud may not form. That is, we will not achieve the goal.
By the way, this (2015) year, due to the prolonged warm autumn and sharp drops in air temperature to -20 ° C, fruit buds on stone fruit trees (peach, apricot, cherry plum, plum) were severely damaged. In the spring we received a lot of frozen dry branches, which had to be cut to living tissue. Then heavy rains started in April-May. This provoked abundant growth of young shoots. If you do not carry out summer pruning of green or lignified shoots, then by the end of summer we will get a too dense crown, which will be more difficult to thin out in the fall. In addition, such abundant branch growth will further weaken our trees, which survived such a difficult winter.
Those gardeners who cut the most varied fruit bushes and trees in the summertime, claim that this is the most best time to remove the gain. The article will help beginners better understand all the nuances. After reading detailed diagram, optimal timing and watching video materials, everything will become clear and understandable.
Summer pruning benefits
Experienced gardeners tend to prune trees at certain times of the year. Everyone does this based on their own experience. Supporters of pruning shoots in summer season focus on the following benefits:
- Fast-growing shoots take a lot of energy from the tree. Removing them in summer allows all the nutrients to be directed to the fruit.
- In the summer months it is easier to form a crown. So more light penetrates to the fruits and it is more convenient to collect them.
- Leaves, after pruning during this period, also receive more light and air. This prevents the development of various diseases.
Many gardeners claim that it is easier to form the crown of a tree in summer.
- Timely thinned crown allows you to well spray literally every leaf with the necessary preparations.
- Trees that have been pruned in summer have many new buds.
Pruning in summer is work with green shoots that have not yet had time to lignify. If we talk about the timing, then it will be held no later than July.
Basic techniques
In the summer, gardeners do light work. These include pinching and pinching, as well as breaking, breaking and, of course, trimming.
Pinching - with its help, the growth of shoots of this year is stopped for 1.5-2 weeks. At the same time, a section with 3-5 leaves on top is removed. Most often, the technique is used in situations where it is difficult to determine the need to completely remove a branch and this question remains open until the fall. The pinching can be repeated after the shoot starts growing again.
Attention! Only those shoots that grow upward or into the tree are pinched.
The pinching time will depend on various parameters: age, variety and growth rate of the tree. The main thing here is to catch the time of intensive growth of young shoots.
Pinning - when carrying out this technique, the branch is shortened to the remainder of 3-5 leaves from below. When a new shoot grows from the upper bud, it is also cut off, leaving 2-3 leaves. By pinching, an accelerated formation of wood around the mother branch is achieved, which contributes to a significant increase in yield. Reception is suitable for young shoots extending from the uterine branches.
Schematic: Pruning Fruit Trees
Breaking - the manipulation is carried out manually, without the help of tools. At the same time, absolutely unnecessary green shoots of the current year, growing vertically, are removed. Reception allows for better penetration sunlight deep into the crown.
Attention! Damages received during the summer breaking are healed very quickly without additional processing.
Breaking - the technique is used when you need to give the shoot the desired direction of growth. It is performed simply: with a fingernail, they press on a certain place and flatten it. Wound tissue forms very quickly here. In the future, she will record the escape in the right direction. Lignified shoots can also be broken. In this case, the branches are bent so that the bark bursts and the middle remains intact. A certain skill is required here - lignified branches often simply break.
Pruning is a wonderful technique used to achieve the formation of a new flower bud at the base of the shoot. It is carried out like this: the shoot, which is not needed for the formation of the crown, is cut shortly, leaving only 2 leaves. As a result, after 1-2 weeks a new branch is obtained from the upper sinus. It is also cut short. Ultimately, after a month, a flower bud appears at the base of the shoot.
Attention! In the rainy season, pruning does not bring the expected result. Under the influence high humidity both buds germinate, as a result of which the flower bud does not form.
Features of pruning trees of different ages
For young trees, the key to pruning is to ensure vigorous growth. To do this, remove all processes that interfere with the growth of the main shoots. This procedure should be carried out in 2-3 years, adhering to the following rules:
- During summer pruning, diseased and drying branches must be removed at the same time. This will ensure a greater supply of nutrients to the healthy shoots that need them.
- All shoots should be cut at an acute angle. So there is less chance of infection.
Be sure to remove diseased and dried branches
Mature trees are pruned slightly differently for rejuvenation purposes. The main signs that a plant needs a similar procedure are 2 main indicators:
- The growth of shoots is less than 30 cm per year, which indicates a significant decrease.
- The tree begins to produce poor-quality crops.
As recommended experienced gardeners, all branches of the old tree should be directed horizontally. This will significantly increase the quality and quantity of the fruit. Shoots older than 3 years should be shortened to a length of 6 m. After the young branches appear on them, the strongest are left. All of the above procedures will ensure a decent harvest from an already elderly tree.
Attention! Slices that are more than 1 cm in diameter must be smoothed with a knife and painted over with oil paint on drying oil.
There are still disputes between gardeners about the need for pruning fruit trees in the summer. It is difficult to come to an unequivocal opinion here. However, some hobbyists regularly perform the procedure during this time of year with good results.