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The gardener must know how to properly care for his garden and how to shape it. Every year, the crown of trees is formed, this is what positively and beneficially affects the increase in the quantity and quality of its fruits, and the productive period of trees also increases. Cherries grow in almost every orchard. Pruning cherries in the fall is a contentious issue for gardeners, and everyone has their own opinion about it – is it worth it at all?
Trimming time
A very large number of gardeners are confident and believe that it is not necessary to do it at all, because they bear fruit well every year. Some believe that pruning cherries in the fall is only harmful to the tree, since during the winter cold snap and frost the tree will not be protected in any way. Pruning cherries in autumn is not as complicated as, for example, pears or apple trees. Of course, you can watch a large number of different videos on this topic, but after reading this entry, you will be able to understand in detail all the nuances of cropping.
On the other hand, if you cherish your plants that bear fruit, you simply must prune your cherries when autumn arrives.
Cherry pruning is required both in spring and autumn.
Depending on the climate zone you are in, the timing of the autumn pruning of cherries may vary. On average, it starts from mid-September (in those regions where it is colder) and until the end of November (where the climate is warmer), when it is already the deepest autumn. It is very important in this case not to miss the moment when colds and frosts come. Pruning should be done when the tree is already dormant. And when the foliage has fallen, you can cut them only in warm, southern regions.
Young cherry trees in the first year of planting, when autumn comes, should not be touched. Because fragile, still young branches can simply die in the cold. Every next year, as soon as autumn comes, it is necessary to carry out preventive procedures for both damaged, dry branches, and those that are “sick”.
Why cut
By doing such a tree care procedure, you will help the plant to “live” longer, bear more fruit, the risks of various plant diseases will also decrease, and in general, you will be sure that everything will be fine, thus there will be no unnecessary, unforeseen worries.
Cherry formation and pruning does not take place in a standard way, like in other fruit trees. This happens because the buds on it are not formed evenly along the entire length, like most others, namely at the ends of its branches. In this case, pruning should be done in such a way that at least a small amount of buds remain, or cut the cherry branch completely. In other words, if you completely remove it, you will thin out the tree. And if a few buds remain, the branch will not dry out, and will continue to grow and bear fruit. In any case, dry or damaged ones, as well as those that interfere with growth, must be removed.
For sanitation purposes, cherry pruning is done in the fall, after which the cut branches must be burned. And the places of cuts need to be treated with a special solution – garden pitch.
If during the fruiting season the crown branches of your trees have grown in the wrong directions, rub against each other, intertwine, interfering with each other, grow in the wrong direction, then with the advent of autumn they are pruned.
Another thing is already mature cherry trees. They need to be cut well. On such a tree, remove all unnecessary, dry and diseased “thickets”, otherwise the tree can produce a much smaller number of fruits, or even get sick. If the tree is very thick, it is worth thinning it out more than once. It is best to do this in one, two or three seasons. In such trees, the first step is to cut the largest branches, this will not affect the number of fruits in any way. In the question of why to prune cherry trees in the fall, these are the most important points.
The scheme and subtleties of trimming different types
Fruit tree pruning scheme
Also, most gardeners are interested in information about the scheme and subtleties of pruning different types of cherry trees with the advent of autumn. Reading specific recommendations in this case will be much clearer than watching a video on this topic.
When you are going to thin out the cherry crown, you need to consider what type of plant you have – a bush or a tree. This is important because the trees need to be pruned every year, shortening their annual shoots to encourage the development of lateral branches as well as branches that will bear berries. On the bushes, the growths are annual, you do not need to remove them, because of this, the entire branch can dry out in them.
Cherry pruning by year
Cherry trees are prone to formations of the so-called root shoots. These shoots need to be cut out every year, and such a process should be done at ground level. This affects the yield of your tree. And if you do not do this, the yield of berries will drop very much. In own-rooted trees, shoots retain the characteristics of varieties and can be used as planting materials. There is no difference and difference in pruning grafted trees and own-rooted ones.
Also, with regard to cherry trees, after a certain period of time, it will be necessary to help stop their growth, and most attention will need to be paid to branches that are intertwined with each other, as well as strong growths. Bush-shaped cherries, which thicken very much, will need to be cut very carefully and all of its largest branches removed.
Subtleties of pruning of different types:
- It is necessary to ensure that the shoots on the first tiers of the cherry do not move more than forty degrees from the trunk, otherwise there is a risk that the tree will break over time.
- Everything that tries to get into the top should be removed so that the tree frame stands firmly.
- When autumn came, you need to shorten the varieties of medium and vigorous plants. You need to shorten the central conductor to the side branch.
- At trunks two years old, branches that have grown sixty centimeters should be cut into a third.
- Do not touch young plants. This will negatively affect the amount of fruit they bear.
- By reducing the number of buds with flowers, the process of shoot growth is accelerated.
- Autumn pruning should be done “reinforced”.
- Keep a close eye on your fruit tree, sometimes it pays to prune one big branch instead of many smaller ones.
- An early and large harvest of fruits will be given by those branches that grow horizontally.
- If on the first tier the shoots began to grow down, remove them immediately.
- As long as the stem of the tree is less than eighty centimeters, there should be no shoots on it.
- Be sure to treat the sections of your plant with garden pitch for their speedy “healing”.
- To keep litter and pests out of your garden, remove all litter by burning it right away.
Secateurs for “cleaning” trees and bushes are not recommended. A sharp special garden saw or sharpened knife is best suited for this procedure. And, of course, keep an eye on your garden, regularly processing plants in it and you will only be pleased with the results.
Video “Pruning cherries”
Video on how to properly cut cherries. Watch the recording and you will learn the basic rules of this procedure.
