Contents
Recently, almost all over the world, everyone who grows fruits prefers dwarf trees. And the apple tree in this case is no exception. Dwarf gardens offer considerable advantages over vigorously growing ordinary fruit trees. After all, everyone knows that small trees are much easier to care for, easier to prune, and harvesting is not difficult. The article will acquaint you with the stages and principles of pruning undersized apple trees.
Features of pruning dwarf apple trees
Low-growing apple trees also need pruning, just like ordinary ones. The crown must be trimmed to create the so-called biological balance.
Judge for yourself, because in the process of transplanting the root system of the seedling decreases and the crown, of course, begins to lose the necessary nutrients from the soil. Therefore, part of the foliage should be removed so that the remaining branches and leaves are fed in full. But if the crown is significantly reduced, the roots in this case will receive less nutrients from the foliage and, ultimately, will die. Therefore, it is so important to trim the crown correctly.
It is necessary to carry out pruning according to all the rules. Having made a mistake, it is sometimes impossible to correct it in the future. Some gardeners do not welcome crown pruning. However, this is fundamentally wrong. After all, with the help of it you can control such an important natural action as fruiting.
Removing the kidneys
Initially, you should focus on the number of buds and the order in which they awaken in the spring. Connoisseurs of gardening know that the upper buds begin to bloom immediately on most apple trees. It is they who subsequently will give you an active increase, which is called the continuation escape. The apple tree also has a competitive escape. It is located next to the upper bud and can overtake the apical buds.
The buds located at the end of the shoot will give young sprouts, and those located in the middle will develop much later, and you should not expect a large number of processes from them. By removing the upper buds, you will cause the development of the middle ones, and only then are they able to give strong shoots.
Before you cut dwarf apple trees, you need to understand the features of the kidneys. During pruning, you should leave exactly those that are able to influence growth and form a crown.
We form a crown
It is desirable that pruning be carried out in autumn or spring, while young shoots have not yet begun to actively grow. It is necessary to take into account the variety and characteristics of the development of seedlings. After all, it will depend on which – external or internal, kidney you will trim. If your goal is to increase the crown, then it is advisable to direct the young branches to the outside. Thus, you will ensure that the plant grows compact, and its branches will not sag.
Remember, the branches of any tree develop unevenly. Among them there are both weak and strong. It is the latter that can interfere with the proper development and growth of small, more fragile branches, which can contribute to their death. Try to regulate the growth of branches so that strong branches are located lower than weak ones. This is achieved with a certain pruning. If young dwarf apple trees regulate the growth and formation of branches as early as possible, then you will achieve the desired result. If you missed the opportunity and did not take care of such a crown formation at the formation stage, it will be impossible to fix it later.
During fruit growth, pruning should be stronger. After all, the branches are quite quickly and strongly overloaded under the influence of fruits. And this in the end result will negatively affect both the quality of fruits and the stability of fruiting. To avoid this, try to immediately rejuvenate those branches that are overgrown.
Root pruning
Pruning of apple trees on a dwarf rootstock is carried out only after the formation of the crown. After planting, the seedling needs a couple of years to develop and strengthen the skeletal branches, as well as the main leader shoot. During this time, the crown acquires many branches that it absolutely does not need. Usually cut out young shoots with the onset of spring. And until that moment, the tree will have to spend a lot of nutrients on their growth. If you didn’t have time in the spring, then you can take up the shoots in the summer – this will also contribute to the successful laying of new formations. And as a result – a rich harvest.
Remember that the purpose of pruning will always depend on the age of your undersized pet. In young trees, the main goal is to form a compact and strong crown that can adequately withstand a rich harvest. As we age, pruning keeps the tree small and increases the size and quality of the fruit.
Shoot tweezing
Pinching (pinching) is considered one of the important elements of pruning in the summer. It consists in the removal of non-lignified young sprouts. It is better to carry out this procedure in the summer. Usually this manipulation is carried out by hand, pinching off part of the process (hence the second name), but sometimes they use a pruner if it is necessary to remove a large, main part of the shoot. Young sprouts are pinched only when the buds wake up close to the leader branch, or when an unwanted shoot appears that will contribute to the incorrect formation of your pet’s crown. Tweezing newly formed processes in the summer will allow you to avoid clipping on the ring with the onset of the next winter period. And only when the sprout becomes woody in the lower part, you can get rid of it with a pruner.
By tweezing in the summer, you will help the tree retain nutrients and direct them to foliage growth, enlargement and development of axillary buds. Each pinching is carried out in several stages. The best option would be 2-3 times within 7-10 days. After all, the growth of shoots is significantly different: the closer to the stem (trunk) – the weaker and vice versa.
If you started the first pinching with the onset of June, then the next should be carried out in early July. If a third pinching is needed, then it will have to be carried out already in August, but there is a risk here. Young shoots may not have time to ripen and the winter cold will destroy them.
If pinching is carried out correctly, then the violent and active growth of developing young branches can be reduced. As a result of this, small and weak shoots will be strengthened. Timely tweezing significantly affects the growth and development of the tree. Remember, pinching is carried out until the shoot stops growing. In the event that the process has formed into a full-fledged apical bud, there is already a branch in front of you and it is not allowed to apply tweezing to it.
Fruit thinning
As you know, a stunted apple tree sets a large number of fruits. And this negatively affects the well-being of the tree, because, expending the supply of nutrients to maintain the fruit, it is greatly depleted. And the quality of the fruits themselves also suffers: the color of the apple will be poor, insufficient, to say nothing of the size. To avoid this, a salutary thinning of the ovaries is carried out. After this procedure, only as many fruits are left as the tree can provide with decent nutrition. Such fruits will have excellent characteristics. And as a result, you can get a good harvest of fairly high-quality and large fruits. And the growth of branches due to the redistribution of power will only increase every year. The complex and rational application of thinning with fertilizer and skilled pruning will contribute to the healthy state of the dwarf apple tree, which will result in additional annual growth.
It is better to thin out after the June fall of excess ovaries. Once that happens, know it’s time to start thinning. To begin, shake each branch so that those ovaries that are weakly held fall off on their own. In the process of thinning, diseased, deformed or small fruits are also disposed of. Leave only healthy and best specimens.
After reading this article, you learned how and why proper pruning is necessary. By limiting the growth of the crown, you give the tree the opportunity to concentrate its strength on the fruits, and the results will not be long in coming. Your apple stock will bear fruit generously and delight you.
Pruning dwarf apple trees (Video)
In this video you will learn about the features of pruning dwarf apple trees.