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Apple cordon with damaged leader?
GemmaJF
Posts: 2,286
in Fruit & veg
I put in some cordons in November and have read I should prune the feathers back to four buds before March. Just took a look at one and realised the leader is damaged, I'm assuming it was supplied that way.
What should I do, if I tidy it up at the end will another leader form that can be trained to complete the cordon to the desired height, or will it be effectively 'stuck' at its current height? I wish I had noticed before putting it in, as the supplier has a no quibble policy for replacing damaged plant. Now though it would seem a bit silly with the thing already planted to complain about it.
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I took a closer look, out of the three apple cordons I bought, two of the leaders had been cut at the nursery, one was damaged. I think I'll press on and see how they do with a bit of growth on them, the supplier guarantees the fruit trees for a year, so plenty of time if I decide to ask for replacements.
I've learnt a lesson Verdun
, if they will recover just fine I'm happy now to go with trimming back to the next bud, I expect they will have a bit of 'crank' in the main stem but I can live with a bit of character on a fruit tree. In future I will inspect things that arrive more carefully and be more prepared to complain in the nicest way poss (before going to the effort of planting them!). 