What happens when you prune the tip of a long branch

[trampledbyturtles]

How do you train your laterals? String tied to a heavy rock to pull them down?

Tree weights

 

[Wild Thing]

How do you train your laterals? String tied to a heavy rock to pull them down?

I just cut some lath into spreaders:





I keep cutting off the lower branches (and other laterals that I know I won't want) 1 or 2 at a time until I get the shape I want. The sooner the better IMO. Why feed a lateral branch that you know you won't want in the future. Just done prune/train more than 20-25% at any one time.

 

[Charman03]

I really like clothes pins as a tool for training branches. Sometimes as a prop from branch to trunk, also just as weights on branches

The clothes pins offer enough weight?

 

[WTNUT]

How do you train your laterals? String tied to a heavy rock to pull them down?

I really like clothes pins as a tool for training branches. Sometimes as a prop from branch to trunk, also just as weights on branches

Yes, that works when they are very small. At some point, you will have to use wire or weights. I have seen others use weights (which when you think about it are simply artificial apples), but I have not tried it. For me the wire is quicker and easier, or at least I think because I have not tried weights ha.


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[Northbound]

Yes like wtnut said, clothes pins are good weight for young. Sometimes I'll put 4 or five on a branch.
The big plus with this is they should fall apart before damaging tree if you forget. That's my concern with wire. I get so ambitious in spring when it comes to trees, then summer work season consumes every minute of daylight, same goes for fall-only time I'm not working I'm hunting so it's easy to forget about tree needs

 

[Bowsnbucks]

I've been using the lath with notched ends for 5 years now, just like Wildthing in post #22. They work great & are cheap.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

That's a beautiful orchard there, Wildthing !! It ought to be on the cover of a magazine. Great work !!

 

[Charman03]

Just wanted to bump this up. I’m still having this dilemma about trimming back the long central leader or no?

 

[aerospacefarmer]

Just wanted to bump this up. I’m still having this dilemma about trimming back the long central leader or no?

If you do I think you will stimulate more growth. Are your trees tall enough?

 

[Charman03]

Central leader up around 9-10 feet high.

The last scaffolding up high on these trees need some training to get them going outwards, but they are as high as central leader too

 

[chickenlittle]

Once planted, I've avoiding heading off the central leader. I let the trees get as tall as they want unless I have to correct something, replace a damaged leader or whatever. I've just done my best to remove the competition for the leader and get to good scaffolding.

Reminds me that I wanted to order one of those long handled pruner tools we talked about the last couple years.

 

[H20fwler]

This^^^^^^

If it is tall and making fruit and it is making it bend pinch them off or support it, if it's a wind issue again support it and slow down fertilizing.

 

[Telemark]

I do what Aero said he does (post #3) - prune to a bud on the outside of a long branch

What does this mean? I can't picture what you're describing.

 

[Native Hunter]

What does this mean? I can't picture what you're describing.

I searched and found you a link with a picture. Look at the picture just below where it says, "Heading cuts with outward facing buds" When the bud in this picture starts growing and becoming the new limb, it will be growing away from the tree rather than toward the tree.

https://www.quickcrop.co.uk/blog/introduction-pruning-apple-trees/

 

[Worm]

Cavey - Try scoring the central leader just above some buds. Maya gave me some advice on how to do it, and there are You-tube videos out there showing the process. If you score above a bud, the bud will push new growth and form a new limb. You can more or less "place" the new limbs where you want them.

Chickenlittle just posted right ahead of me. ^^^^^^^ He said the same thing.

When should I score the central leader. In winter,when tree is dormant, or growing season ?
Thanks

 

[Charman03]

I searched found you a link with a picture. Look at the picture just below where it says, "Heading cuts with outward facing buds" When the bud in this picture starts growing and becoming the new limb, it will be growing away from the tree rather than toward the tree.

https://www.quickcrop.co.uk/blog/introduction-pruning-apple-trees/

Thanks for the link

 

[Charman03]

When should I score the central leader. In winter,when tree is dormant, or growing season ?
Thanks

I think before bud break. I did this last year and it worked

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Worm, post # 35 - I score mine in the dormant period usually in March when I prune. Then when things green up, the trees put energy into making new limbs right below the score. I make my scores about 1/4" above a bud.

From all I've read and been told by university experts & local orchard owners, fruit trees will act a certain way depending on what you do to them. The trees' hormones will direct their actions. If you make certain pruning cuts, the trees will act accordingly to what you do. The same is true of branch angles. If branches are allowed to grow vertically upward, trees won't fruit much. If the correct branch angles are formed by training them, (60 degrees from the leader, I believe), you get the best balance between fruiting and growth. By training your scaffolds in such a way, they don't compete with the central leader, so the tree's hormones allow the leader to continue growing upward, giving you a taller tree. If you score above a bud to induce new branching, the tree "knows" that the cambium path has been cut off to upward growth in that location, so it pushes new growth outward there at that bud.

Apple tree experts : did I word that correctly ?? If there's more to add - please do so.

EDIT - I read the link posted by Native Hunter in post #34, which also shows another link about pruning OLDER apple trees. Both links' info is very clear, with pix and illustrations.

THANKS NATIVE HUNTER !!!

 

[Telemark]

I searched found you a link with a picture. Look at the picture just below where it says, "Heading cuts with outward facing buds" When the bud in this picture starts growing and becoming the new limb, it will be growing away from the tree rather than toward the tree.

https://www.quickcrop.co.uk/blog/introduction-pruning-apple-trees/

Thanks for that. I think I inderstand it now.

 

[Charman03]

I feel like I made some really good pruning cuts today bc of this thread