Pruning fruit tree

Posts

• Dovefromabove Posts: 88,147

  27 January

  Could be a prunus of some sort … damson perhaps 🤔 
  
  In which case do not prune until the Mid-May /June to avoid Silverleaf disease. 

  
  Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
  
  
  
  
  
  

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• gemmalucygodber0172697 Posts: 4

  27 January

  Thankyou for the advice, would I prune like any other kind of fruit tree?
  Just looks like a birds nest to me! 

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• thevictorian Posts: 1,279

  27 January

  Looks like a prunus to me as well and I think damson is a good shout due to its thick growth.
  
  With such dense growth you would want to open it up and produce a nice framework over a number of years. This is recommended because you ideally want to minimise the number of wounds that it needs to heal at one time.

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• Waterbut Posts: 344

  27 January

  Best bit of pruning advice I received was never let a fruit tree grow higher than you can reach. Unless you need height for a reason.

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• Joyce Goldenlily Posts: 2,933

  28 January

  Are you sure it is a fruit tree? It looks like a hawthorn/blackthorn to me.
  You can begin by removing any branches that are pointing back towards the trunk.
  Then remove any branches that are crossing over sideways.
  Remove any damaged branches.
  Look at the main trunk low down and find a swollen, lumpy area, the grafting point and remove any growth below it down to and below soil level.
  Stand back and admire your handiwork and leave the tree alone until next year. 
  The aim is to create a bowl shape of growth so that next year you can begin thinning the growth in the centre of the tree.
  If you do too much pruning in one go it will make the tree spring into survival mode and it will produce a lot of new unwanted growth.
  Prune in Jan/FEB. for fruti.
  Prune in August for size.
  I hope I have got that the correct way round!

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