pruning trees in winter

[Dilz]

i asked her to back up her argument - but she said she couldn't remember every thing but her tutor said so and he's really smart (but as far as i know hasn't worked on the tools full time but his dad once wrote a book on apple trees). I got irked by the 'what i say is fact attitude' that she new more about trees than folk who have been in the industry a decade or more but was then unable to back up her statement.....' but she made me dinner so all is forgiven.

[born2trot]

Pathogens are looking for their victims at Autumn time .

Nature knows best

[Gnome]

I avoid touching Prunus sp. due to silver leaf (May-June as long as the weather is dull) Then once all my leaves are cleared up in December the tools come out. I always try to pick the best weather conditions to do any of my jobs. It's a luxury that I know many of you guys just don't have. If a butterfly flaps it's wings the wrong way the job doesn't get done. There's always something else to keep me going.

 

I am always keen to listen to young and old as long as there is a reason that seems reasonable to me. I've always liked it when apprentices have asked me why I do something. Shows there interested.

 

They soon learn not to get too clever cos there is always digging to be done!!

[Pierre27]

It seems youngsters in any industry treat what they are told in training as gospel, I know I did. Then you do it in practice and realise it quite often works differently in real life. The only difference was that I kept my mouth shut untill I was experienced enough to know the score. Kids today often don't have the respect, tact, sense (whatever you want to call it) to keep schtumm (probably not how it's spelt I know!).

[Canal Navvy]

I am wondering if our random weather makes "correct" timing of pruning impossible to do?

[agg221]

i asked her to back up her argument - but she said she couldn't remember every thing but her tutor said so and he's really smart (but as far as i know hasn't worked on the tools full time but his dad once wrote a book on apple trees).

 

That's interesting, since in most circumstances the best time to prune apple trees is in winter....

 

I can only talk with any confidence about fruit and nut species and their ornamental derivatives. Apples and pears are conventionally pruned in winter to stimulate growth of younger, fruit-bearing branches. The exception is for trained forms, such as espaliers, cordons, fans etc where the aim is to minimise growth. These are pruned in July/August taking off almost all of the current year's growth. The aim is to do it early enough to stimulate fruit bud production, late enough to decrease the likelihood of secondary growth from the current year's growth, which is unlikely to ripen properly before the frost.

 

Plums and cherries (and any prunus) are generally pruned from blossom through to end of June to avoid silver-leaf. Cobnuts are generally pruned in February, as the catkins are in flower to encourage the dispersion of the pollen. Walnuts are pruned as little as possible, but in mid-summer, to minimise bleeding.

 

 

Quite a range really, for such a small number of species.

 

Alec

[Albedo]

Ask her what hippopotomonstrosesquipedalianism is....If she doesn't know ...Sack her:001_smile:

[arbogrunt]

with the exceptions listed above, I find the best time to prune a tree is just after I've sharpened my MS201

[MATTMOSS]

Ask her what hippopotomonstrosesquipedalianism is....If she doesn't know ...Sack her:001_smile:

 

Now your just using long words to confuse people

[oslac]

The current thinking is that winter pruning removes the stored energy adjacent to buds which is used during leaf and flower burst. This means that energy must be transferred around the tree prior to growth starting in the spring and before the tree has the chance to build up its energy reserves via photosynthesis. This may lead to physiological stress in the tree resulting in a weakening of the tree's ability to defend it self against active pathogens.

 

It is also thought that there are more air bourne pathogen spores floating around in the autumn and winter which can infect a dormant tree's newly cut branch and before the tree can use its available energy to defend itself. Chop a branch off and pathogen spores have a clear route into the tree.

 

Pruning the tree in summer allows the tree to repair itself prior to dormancy and allows starch to be stored where the tree needs it i.e. behind the buds and ready for the spring.