What to put on pruned branches

[Lazurus]

Ok I have a fig and 5 mature apple tree that I need to go hard at this year, is there anything I need to put on the pruned wounds to prevent infection, rot etc or just let nature prevail?

 

S.

[Macca]

Socks

[sloth]

Bird feeders? And a scarf...

[skyhuck]

Painting wounds does not prevent pathogen attack, it actually produces the perfect environment for them.

 

Get piece of steak and put it on your kitchen counter top for a day, it may dry out a little, but will be fine. Take a steak, put it in a plastic bag and leave that out for the day, it will get sweaty and slimy.

 

 A slight gap will always form between the paint and the cut, this gap becomes the perfect place for infection.

[Marula]

As Huck says, paint creates the perfect environment. The air is filled with millions of fungal spores, as the cut is made the wound is infected immediately, the tree will respond by isolating the wound area with various forms of anti fungal compounds. When you paint the wound the tree cannot add new wood to the area to close the wound thereby preventing the fungi from getting air which it requires to spread.
Make a clean cut and let the tree do its thing.

[Gary Prentice]

Can you still buy Arbrex?

 

seriously though the pruning position is the most important thing. 

Get that right and the tree has the best chance of defending itself

[departed]

What time of year is best? I always thought winter was best for all tree work, pruning, coppicing, etc. But while on a course recently the instructor suggested that spring may be better due to the sap running and therefore 'washing' the cut area.

[Macca]

Height of summer or winter! Never spring or autumn.

[departed]

Thanks for that Edwardc [emoji1303]

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

Only little piece to add to the advice above would be sharp & clean pruning implements. [emoji1303]

[daveatdave]

you do not prune plum trees in winter its a summer job