CrazyEd
5 year old buck +
for aggressively managing your young fruit trees.
Remove competing leaders. If you are managing your trees to the central leader shape you should pinch off new growth immediately around the leader.
Use clothes pins to help form good crotch angles on new forming branches.
Tie down larger limbs with 14 gauge wire. Check a few times throughout the growing season to make sure nothing is getting girdled or is too tight. Shoot for 60 degree angles.
When tying down branches it doesnt take much, a simple loop or hook usually does the trick. You can tie them off on bigger stronger limbs below or on your cage.
You can see this tree i have a ton of wire on it at the moment. after a couple months it should have done its job and should be removed. You might have to adjust throughout the growing season.
Overtime you'll have a nice shaped tree with strong limbs that will be fruiting early. This is a 3rd leaf Zestar! on G.30 roots, it produced 6 nice fruit in year 2. It's also a great idea to fruit your central leader, one single fruit up high can really produce a lean to the top of your tree, if you want it growing straight and up all fruit should be removed on the upper 2/3 of the leader, if not the whole leader.
Here is a 2nd Leaf sweet 16 on G.30 roots, this is the one i just tied down with all the wire. These G30 trees are staked with a single 7' steel t-post, I might have to add additional support. G30 are supposed to be staked for life and are known for producing heavy fruit loads at a young age.
Remove competing leaders. If you are managing your trees to the central leader shape you should pinch off new growth immediately around the leader.
Use clothes pins to help form good crotch angles on new forming branches.
Tie down larger limbs with 14 gauge wire. Check a few times throughout the growing season to make sure nothing is getting girdled or is too tight. Shoot for 60 degree angles.
When tying down branches it doesnt take much, a simple loop or hook usually does the trick. You can tie them off on bigger stronger limbs below or on your cage.
You can see this tree i have a ton of wire on it at the moment. after a couple months it should have done its job and should be removed. You might have to adjust throughout the growing season.
Overtime you'll have a nice shaped tree with strong limbs that will be fruiting early. This is a 3rd leaf Zestar! on G.30 roots, it produced 6 nice fruit in year 2. It's also a great idea to fruit your central leader, one single fruit up high can really produce a lean to the top of your tree, if you want it growing straight and up all fruit should be removed on the upper 2/3 of the leader, if not the whole leader.
Here is a 2nd Leaf sweet 16 on G.30 roots, this is the one i just tied down with all the wire. These G30 trees are staked with a single 7' steel t-post, I might have to add additional support. G30 are supposed to be staked for life and are known for producing heavy fruit loads at a young age.
