pruning fruit trees ( apple and peach )

[just_a_tree_guy]

i have a client who wants me to prune some young apple and peach trees for him so they will bear the most fruit . i talked to a orchard guy and he said to hack them up and prune any branch or sucker growing straight up and leave the branches that are growing out on the sides. i really do not think hacking them would be best, would it ? i want to do what is good for these trees and also keep them looking good for the client . any help would be appreciated . thanks !

 

[GregManning]

Contact your local state horticultural center.
They will have lots of pamphlets / instructions for pruning.

Do not hack them.

There are 2 practices.

(I used to have 30+ fruit trees that I brought back from being abandoned.
But it took several years to complete the pruning.)

The buds must be exposed to lots of sun light.

1. Keep the center open. No Center leader.
2. If you keep a center leader, then create a spiral of laterals, with lots of sunlight to each.

Tell your client that it takes a LOTS of pesticide spraying to really produce good quality fruit.

Just FYI.

 

[mdvaden]

My trees are round-headed, and I've done central leader trees too: almost tall pyramids.

Some like Liberty almost need no spraying. I tend not to spray about every other year for fungus. And just a teeny bit for insects.

Apple trees can be so intricate to prune the right way, I would only explain it in-depth to someone standing at the same tree. Even then it takes work to teach it right. It's like 3 times more difficult than just doing proper corrective pruning on a Japanese maple.

I never remove all the sprouts. Some are very useful for developing into fruit spurs.

Peach is a headache, at least in northern Oregon. More need for pesticide it seems, and sort of tricky to prune. At least with apple, it's pretty easy to get an attractive tree. With peach, sometimes looks needs to be sacrificed for fruit production.

 

[just_a_tree_guy]

thanks guys . you are all very helpful all the time . much appreciated . thanks again. peace !

 

[southsoundtree]

http://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/pdf/pnw/pnw400.pdf