When to prune apple trees?

Pruning apple trees is a must and regular process for any gardener looking to maximize yields in their garden. This procedure allows you to influence the healthy state of trees and fruits. Too thickened apple trees that have not been shorn for a long time give small yields of small and sour apples. Part of the tree remains shaded, which has a bad effect on the ripening of fruits, which lack sunlight and nutrients that are used to maintain the excess green mass of the crown. Most amateur gardeners believe that tree pruning is done only in the spring, but depending on the purpose, this work can be carried out in other seasons.

For the correct formation of the crown of trees and their normal development, pruning of excess branches should be done... As a result of this necessary element of apple tree care, illumination and air circulation inside the crown are improved, the fruits receive more minerals from the soil, and the harvesting process is greatly facilitated. You can prune apple trees in different seasons of the year.

The correct shape of the crown should approach the shape of a rounded cone, and this formation should begin from the first days of planting the seedling in the spring.

A young apple tree is considered to be up to five years old, and during this time up to 4 tiers can form on it... If you do not prune correctly, the lowest side shoots will appear at a height of one meter, and the rest will be located even higher, and it will be much more difficult to pick apples on such a tree. To do this, in the first year of planting in the ground, spring pruning is carried out, which consists in removing the top so that a two-year-old seedling remains about 1 meter high.

In the next few years, formative spring pruning consists in the removal of excess shoot length up to the 3rd bud, as well as branches that begin to grow towards the inside of the tree. Too long upper branches are also removed to the minimum size. Slices on the branches of young trees should be done immediately above the bud so that there are no stumps left. In the spring of old trees, rejuvenating pruning is made, during which it is necessary not only to remove the ends with pruners, but also to saw branches that are too close to each other.

Formative and rejuvenating pruning of mature trees in the fall has its benefits. Until the beginning of spring, the wounds will have time to heal, and the tree will not have to spend extra energy on this during the period of increased spring vegetation. However, this process must be done in advance so that the bark grows before the onset of severe frosts.

The peculiarities of summer pruning of an apple tree are that it affects the timing of flowering of the tree next spring. So you can extend the growing season, and postpone the flowering of the tree until the time when late frosts can no longer damage the future harvest. In summer, pruning is done in June or July, as the intense heat in late summer has a negative effect on wound healing and the tree loses a lot of moisture.During this period of the year, mainly gentle formative pruning of the crown is done, which will not force a tree in an active phase to endure severe stress. They also remove vertical branches - tops, which take up a lot of nutrients for their growth, but do not produce fruits.

The most suitable winter month for pruning apple trees in the garden is February, as the trees are still in the winter dormancy stage. The gardener should choose periods for this when the temperature does not drop below -10 degrees. The skeleton of a tree without foliage is clearly visible, so all operations to remove unnecessary branches can be done with it without haste and consistently, since the rest of the work in the garden in winter is still not as much as at other times of the year.

In order for the trees to look healthy, well-groomed and give excellent yields, gardening should be carried out every month, depending on the period. At any time of the year, you can reduce stress and the possibility of diseases in trees by using the lunar calendar.... The intensity of movement of all kinds of liquids, to which the sap of the tree belongs, increases depending on the cycle of the night luminary. A tree can lose especially a lot of vital juices if you cut and saw down branches during the full moon and on the waning moon.

Different regions of the Russian Federation have their own climatic features, which affect the timing of pruning apple trees, as it is one of the few garden pome crops that grow in the coldest areas. For any area of ​​the cold climatic zone, the main rule must be observed: do not prune wet trees, and allow them to dry out after rain.

For gardeners who have plots in the Moscow region and central Russia, autumn pruning of apple trees can be done from mid-October to early November. During this period, trees begin to enter the period of hibernation and tolerate such manipulations with their branches more easily, and wounds heal faster, preparing for the onset of cold weather. Earlier, they start pruning early varieties, the harvest of which is harvested, and the foliage begins to fall off. The last of the apple trees in the garden are the late varieties. Before the season starts, pruning can begin in late February.

When pruning apple trees in the Leningrad Region in the fall, it is necessary to calculate the operating time in such a way that at least three weeks remain before the onset of frost. In this region, this period falls in September or early October. In the spring, pruning is done in March.

Late varieties of apple trees in Siberia and the Urals are desirable to be cut in the spring. So, after harvesting and subsequent autumn processing, the wounds on the branches and trunks will not have time to heal until frost. But in mid-season and early apple trees, pruning can be done from mid-September to early October.