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beesneeds

Can I prune now?

beesneeds
9 years ago

I have a home that came with a small orchard that hadn't been tended in many years- and my bad, I've been so caught up in trying to figure out how to keep up with 4 acre property after living in Chicago that I haven't tended to this orchard before now. This is my third winter here.

I was talking to the previous owner recently, and he told me the trees had never been pruned- and that I could start pruning on them any time I wanted since now the leaves have dropped that means the sap has gone down so I'm good to go.

I'm not too sure I trust this information. The guy does construction and more tree removal than maintenance, and to my understanding his wife was the one that took care of the yard while they were living here- and when I asked her she just told me to do with the trees whatever I want.

I have 3 apples, 3 huge sweet cherries, 1 sour cherry, 1 pear, and 1 fairly dead apricot or peach (not sure which). Some of them are overshadowing each other. All of them could use some care.

So can I do pruning on them now? Or do I need to wait till further into winter? Two of the apples are probably the worst, with little suckers and growing into each other. And one of those has some broken damage from a couple years ago when it got topheavy and was broken during a bad windstorm. The sweet cherries I'm nervous about because they are so tall I don't want to lop off too much of the top. The pear and one of the apples are pretty good, but the branches are kind of garled up, so I don't know if they really need pruning or not. And the apricot/peach is half dead and hasn't produced a fruit to actual eating since I've moved in.

To top it all off, the badly intergrowing apples and sour cherry tree are overshadowed by a super huge maple tree that my hubby said no way to removing at all- I had to argue just to get him to agree that maybe I can trim that back so it isn't overhanging the orchard so badly.

Comments (8)

  • zzackey
    9 years ago

    I would suggest your check with your local agricultural center. They should have a horticulturist on staff and free pamphlets that show you how to prune. Or try looking on EDIS (online) for your state. It has a tiny search bar on the top right. It's not the easiest site to use, but the info comes from your local university.

  • fireballsocal
    9 years ago

    The leaves have dropped and the trees are now dormant. Feel free to start pruning. You sound like you have a good idea what needs to be done so good luck with the orchard.

  • steve333_gw
    9 years ago

    Not sure about your locale, but here it is best to wait until the worst of the winter cold has past. Pruning too early can cause problems with further die back.

    Checking with locals is a good idea.

  • beesneeds
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks for all the advice folks. It's too snowy right now to do anything, and besides, it's Thanksgiving. But I will check with some more local sources to see what they say about their fruit trees :)

  • alan haigh
    9 years ago

    You are probably safe to prune the apples in late fall, but sweet cherries should never be pruned at this time where you are. The tactic is to prune them when they are in growth to reduce the risk of canker infection- often mid-summer is recommended but you can probably get started safely once trees are in bloom. Better the wounds close quickly, which they do when the trees are growing.

    Extreme weather, below -20 within a couple weeks of pruning apples can cause injury, although I've not seen it. It partially depends on the cultivars along with a slew of other factors.

    With young trees that have never been pruned I'd wait until mid-March if it is just as easy for you to do it then. That will allow you to do plenty of reading on how to deal with these trees that have never been pruned. You are probably going to need to remove some very large branches right to the trunk. You should show us some pictures.

    I and others on this forum know more about renovating neglected trees than most anyone you are likely to find at your cooperative extension. This is a dying art form in the halls of academia and the field of commercial fruit production. It is a major part of my business and others here have actual experience at it.

  • beesneeds
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I'm not sure if the trees are young- I know they are all over 8 years old, maybe more like 10-15 years old? And I really would rather save these trees and bring them back to health than remove and replace them.

    That's one of the reasons why I came here to ask questions- the vast information on the net was pretty confusing in some aspects, and seemed more geared to keeping up trees right from the start, or encouraged tearing them out and starting over rather than trying to rehab what I got.

  • alan haigh
    9 years ago

    Apples can always be rebuilt to a lower more open structure. They are very cooperative that way. Cherries not as much, but much more than peaches.

    You can likely begin cropping them next season after removing about 40% of existing big wood depending on ho vigorous they are now. and how overgrown they are.

  • RedSun (Zone 6, NJ)
    9 years ago

    Cut down the branches that rub each other. There will be more damages when wind blows. That is not healthy for the trees. Other than that, leave to spring.

    This post was edited by RedSun on Fri, Nov 28, 14 at 8:06