- Author: Barbara Kissinger Santos
There are six key reasons to prune fruit trees:
- Control size for easier care in maintaining and picking fruit
- Increase strength – develop strong limb structure
- Distribute sunlight evenly throughout the tree
- Regulate fruit bearing – remove excess fruitwood
- Renew fruitwood – to continue strong buds and flowers
- Remove undesirable wood- dead, broken, and crossing branches
How to prune?
Use the correct tools. For mature trees you should have hand-pruning shears, lopping shears with 24-to-30-inch handles and for larger, mature trees, a pruning saw with an 8-to-15-inch curved blade and wide set teeth. If your tree is mature and you cannot reach the top of the tree from the ground, you will also need an orchard (tripod) ladder. Folding and extension ladders are unsafe and not designed for unstable ground or tree work.
Two Types of Cuts
- Thinning cuts are used to remove lateral branches at their origin or to shorten branch length by cutting to another lateral that is a minimum of 1/3 the width of the branch section being removed. Lateral cuts should be angled and done just outside of the branch bark ridge and branch collar. Cutting into the branch collar can damage the plant and cause decay.
- Heading cuts are when a plant is cut back to a stub, lateral bud or small lateral branch. When heading back to a lateral bud or small lateral branch, the cut should be made at approximately a 45* angle away from the bud or branch and ¼ inch above it. Heading cuts may result in a flush of vigorous, upright growth. Note the three sets of three branches starting just below a heading cut.
The strongest growth goes to the terminal bud. When cut, the lateral bud becomes the terminal bud, and growth continues in that direction. You can use your pruning cuts to direct the growth of the tree, and to keep it short enough for easy picking of fruit.
Tips for proper pruning
- Prune fruit trees when the leaves are off (dormant). It's easier to see what you are doing and removal of dormant buds (growing points) invigorates the remaining buds. Summer pruning removes leaves (where the plant's food is manufactured), will slow fruit ripening, and exposes fruit to sunburn. Summer pruning can be beneficial, however, when used to slow down overly vigorous trees or trees that are too large. It is usually done just after harvest.
- When deciding which branch to cut and where to cut it, remember that topping a vertical branch encourages vegetative growth necessary for development of the tree and opens the tree to more sunlight. Topping horizontal branches is done to renew fruiting wood and to thin off excessive fruit. Horizontal branches left uncut will bear earlier and heavier crops.
- Upright branches generally remain vegetative and vigorous. Horizontal branches generally are more fruitful. A good combination of the two is necessary, for fruiting now and in future years. Remove suckers, water sprouts and most competing branches growing straight up into the tree. Downward bending branches eventually lose vigor and produce only a few small fruit; cut off the part hanging down.
- New growth occurs right where you make the cut; the cut only affects the buds within 1 to 8 inches of the cut surface not 3 to 4 feet down into the tree. The more buds removed, the more vigorous the new shoots will be.
- Do most of the pruning in the top of the tree so that the lower branches are exposed to sunlight. Sun exposed wood remains fruitful and produces the largest fruit. Shaded branches eventually stop fruiting and will never produce without drastic topping and renewal of the entire tree.
- Use spreaders or tie downs to get 45° angles branches of upright vigorous growing trees.
For peach and nectarine trees, remove 50% of last year's growth. For fig, apple, pear, plum and apricot, remove about 20% of last years' growth. For cherries and apricots, only prune in summer for the first 5 years.
Resources:
The California Backyard Orchard https://homeorchard.ucanr.edu/The_Big_Picture/Pruning_&_Training/
California Master Gardener Handbook.
Barbara Kissinger Santos has been a UC Master Gardener in Stanislaus County since 2024
There's still space in our Tool Maintenance Workshop this Saturday, January 11, 2025 that starts at 9:00 a.m.
See live demos to help you better understand the process and get your questions about tool maintenance answered. Another important topic covered is how to keep tools clean and sanitized to prevent the spread of pathogens.
Hope to see you there!
Where: Agricultural Center, Harvest Hall rooms D&E*
Address: 3800 Cornucopia Way, Modesto, 95358.
When: Saturday, January 11, 2025 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Cost: FREE
Instructors: Tim Long & Bill DiCristina, UCCE Stanislaus County Master Gardeners
Sign Up**: https://ucanr.edu/tools/2025 you can also see details at https://ucanr.edu/sites/stancountymg/Calendar/
Questions? (209) 525-6862
*flyer says AB&C, class is in rooms D&E.
**printed handouts available for those who sign up (before Thursday, Jan 9), supplies limited.
If you are considering planting one or adding to your collection, come to our class to learn how to grow these tasty fruits, including pruning tips (wait, don't prune your trees in winter!) when to fertilize, and the best time to harvest citrus.
We hope to see you at one of our library locations. For a list of our classes, you can visit our website at https://ucanr.edu/sites/stancountymg/Calendar/
Garden tools looking sad? Your hula hoe doesn't dance anymore? Got rust on your shovel?
Join the UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners next month for an experience that's sure to not be dull! Learn how to sharpen common garden tools such as hoes, shovels, pruners, loppers, and hula hoes so you can go home and sharpen the tools in your shed.
See live demos to help you better understand the process and get your questions about tool maintenance answered. Another important topic covered is how to keep tools clean and sanitized to prevent the spread of pathogens.
Hope to see you there!
Where: Agricultural Center, Harvest Hall rooms D&E*
Address: 3800 Cornucopia Way, Modesto, 95358.
When: Saturday, January 11, 2025 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Cost: FREE
Instructors: Tim Long & Bill DiCristina, UCCE Stanislaus County Master Gardeners
Sign Up**: https://ucanr.edu/tools/2025 you can also see details at https://ucanr.edu/sites/stancountymg/Calendar/
Questions? (209) 525-6862
*flyer says AB&C, class is in rooms D&E.
**printed handouts available for those who sign up, supplies limited.
Mistletoe are plants that grow on the branches of trees or large shrubs. Because they are largely parasitic, they tend to have a mixed reputation. But there's more to the story of mistletoe. . .
Mistletoe Folklore
Mistletoe legends go back hundreds of years. It was considered a symbol of life because when other plants are leafless in winter, it is green and bears fruit.
An old Norse legend says the god Balder was mistakenly killed by a blind brother with an arrow of mistletoe. His mother's tears turned into white berries as they fell on mistletoe, so the plant became associated with undying love.
The ancient Celts used mistletoe as part of their winter solstice celebrations. Druids considered mistletoe to be a sacred plant because it didn't grow from roots, but on branches high up in trees. People would wear mistletoe charms for good luck and protection from evil spirits. Sprays would be hung from doorways to ensure only happiness could enter a home.
By the 1700's, “kissing balls” made of holly, boxwood and mistletoe were hung in windows and doorways during the winter holidays. A young lady caught under one could not refuse a kiss. According to custom, after each kiss, a berry would be removed, until they were all gone.
What is Mistletoe?
Mistletoe ”kisses” a tree or shrub by attaching to a branch using a connective appendage through which it sucks water and nutrients from its host. Mistletoe is either female or male. Males produce only pollen. The female plants produce sticky white berries from October – December.
The two most common species found in our area are:
Broadleaf mistletoe (Phoradendron macrophyllum) grows on several landscape trees including alder, flowering pear, box elder, silver maple, zelkova, and walnut. Some broadleaf mistletoe species also conduct photosynthesis so are hemiparasite (half-parasite). The sticky berries are eaten by cedar waxwings, robins and other birds. The birds digest the seeds, excreting living seeds which stick to a branch they may land on. Infestations tend to occur on taller, mature trees, because birds prefer higher perches.
Dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium spp.) infest pines, firs, junipers, and other conifers. They are true parasites, obtaining all their nutrients from their host plant. Due to conifers being evergreen year-round, the small size, and inconspicuous coloration of dwarf mistletoe, they can be difficult to spot. Dwarf mistletoe seeds are spread mostly by forcible ejection, which can propel sticky seeds onto needles of nearby conifers up to 40 feet away. When it rains, the seeds slide down the needles to twigs where infestation occurs. More common in the Sierra foothills, dwarf mistletoe is not found as often in urban/suburban environments.
Mistletoe Myth
While mistletoe is largely parasitic, it is a myth that they always kill their host plant and should be removed if it appears in your tree. Mistletoe rarely kills a healthy tree, though it may lose some branches due to infestation.
Broadleaf mistletoe has been shown to have several important benefits for nature. They provide food for wildlife (birds love the berries!), as well as cover and nesting sites for birds and some small mammals. In some instances, they have been associated with increased biodiversity.
Mistletoe Infestations
The most effective control is to remove infected branches as soon as they become apparent, after leaves drop in autumn, by pruning at least one foot from the point of mistletoe attachment. Chemicals only provide short-term control and don't kill mistletoe plants. Since broadleaf mistletoes easily spread from tree to tree in urban/suburban settings due to birds, a community cooperative effort is the best defense by removing all mistletoes from all streets. See UC IPM Pest Notes for more detailed information: https://ipm.ucanr.edu/legacy_assets/PDF/PESTNOTES/pnmistletoe.pdf
Planting tree species which appear to be resistant to mistletoes can help reduce future infestations. Mistletoe rarely infest Bradford flowering pear, Chinese pistache, crape myrtle, ginkgo, liquid amber, sycamore, true cedars or redwood. Susceptible tree varieties include alder, Modesto ash, and Aristocrat flowering pear. Most dwarf mistletoe attack only a few related pine species, so replanting with a diversity of trees will help.
Enjoy Mistletoe!
In cases when there is little concern that mistletoes will spread to other trees (because area trees are healthy and/or already resistant) take pleasure in seeing the occasional cluster of broadleaf mistletoes hanging high on branches of bare trees in the winter. After all, a flock of cedar waxwings descending on a tree with mistletoe berries is a sight to see! And, without mistletoe, we can't have bunches of decorative balls of mistletoe hanging in our homes so people can stand under them during the winter holidays and be kissed!
Resources
UC IPM Quick Tips: Mistletoes - https://ipm.ucanr.edu/legacy_assets/PDF/QT/qtmistletoe.pdf
UC ANR Blog, SJ County Master Gardener: Managing Mistletoe in Trees: https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=26219
Denise Godbout-Avant has been a UC Master Gardener in Stanislaus County since 2020
