TECHNICAL AND PRACTICAL INFORMATION ABOUT PRUNING METHODS

Pruned in Tiers and Cloud Shaped Goldcrest – Cupressus Macrocarpa

Pruning is one of the most important tasks applied to every kind of tree, foliage plants, pines, flowers and some vegetables. With the help of pruning, plants become healthier, longer lasting and stay younger for a long period of time. But, it should be kept in mind that only if the pruning is done by a very experienced and clued-up person will it be beneficial! Otherwise, every plant pruned unconsciously would be damaged. Every branch pruned or thinned wrongly would not only cause to destabilize the balance of tree but also cause some changes in its form, leading it to have no more strength to stand against the diseases and become stunted. Within a very short period time, the tree would be a deadwood. Provided that pruning is done correctly while removing the offending-oversized branches, the form and shape of branches will be in an equilibrium; the tree will not get tired of in vain and be free from its heavy and broken branches crowding each other, which results in quite good air and sunlight penetration and therefore healthier and longer lasting tree. So, for all plants, pruning takes the lead among other beneficial things. You could rehabilitate your trees with only correct way of pruning; otherwise, you surely waste them! Using the term ‘pruning’, we are not talking about ‘one stereotype of cutting’. Every tree, every pine, every flower tree and every foliage plant requires a distinct and independent pruning technique. Every kind of strain necessitates its own sort of pruning. You can’t prune a fruit tree in the same way as you do with a foliage plant or a pine as a fruit tree or a flower as a foliage plant. All should be pruned in their own way and particular form. Pruning techniques vary from species to species and even every species of fruit asks for its own way. The reason is that every species has different type of fruit vesicles and fruit buds. For instance, considering the pruning techniques, varieties of the pear tree show changes in form and particularly pruning of Akça Pirus – Communis – is rather different than that of other pear trees. The same situation is also valid for trees such as Apple – Prius Malus – and Plum – Prunus Domestica  . While pruning, only trees like Peach and Apricot (Persica Vulgaris and Prunus Armeniaca, respectively) and some Plum species show particular similarities and do not show a change. These trees bear their fruits generally on their one year old sprouts or offshoots. Fruits of a peach tree are also produced on a-year old sprout; but they put forth their fruits on double sprouts. Single sprouts are in fact the foliar buds.

Pruned in Tiers and Cloud Shaped Laurel

Thus, anyone who would like to do pruning should know all the issues mentioned above and be familiar with a leaf bud or a fruit bud. Without such knowledge and expertise, would it possible to prune a tree? Doing so, a person would unconsciously cast away all fruit buds with his own hand. When the fruit set time comes, the tree would produce leaves instead of fruits and all the efforts and expenses you made would go down the drain. Pruning should be done each year. The trees not being pruned every year won’t yield fruit in the same way. Sometimes, they yield less and less and once in a while produce fruits; so, they may not have some certain fruitfulness. Upon yielding little, they do not meet or beat the expenses made, and on bearing excessively, the crop will be skimpy and muscatel. The fruits will have neither colour and flavour nor quality and splendidness. Moreover, the tree yields less and less in the following year as it would fruit more heavily at a younger age and get tired due to heavy fruitfulness. As a result of this, an unhealthy course of events persists to appear regularly. Under any circumstances, pruning is the right thing to do instead of fertilization. In addition to this, controlling your tree with the help of pruning and preventing it growing too longer, you can train your younger tree to the desired size and maintain mature tree form, size, health and appearance. Whether it is a fruit tree or not, on a snowy or rough weather, being out of control and balance, a tree hardly remains standing and eventually topples down.  The only way to prevent this is to prune the tree regularly. When trees unpruned can not embosom their heavy branches, inhibiting water – pass into some of the branches, they dry them up to continue their own life and prune themselves. In this way, trees feel tired in no time at all and shorten their life. Moreover, if a pesticide is applied when the tree is enormously productive, it can’t penetrate into the parts where fruits are touching each other and if there is a part left as big as a pinpoint without spray penetration, a weevil getting into that part is likely to damage your fruit. Therefore, unfortunately, all your efforts and expenses go to waste.

Pruned and Ball Shaped Scarlet Firethorn – Pyracantha Coccinea

Pruning of fruit trees stars with the year in which it was planted. Desired shape and size is maintained with pruning techniques. Including Pyramidal, Goble and Palmed shaped ones, fruit trees are generally pruned in autumn – when they shed leaves –, which is almost the end of November. For fruit trees, pruning starts before fruit buds swell. Green Pruning is also applied on fruit trees in Spring and Summer months. The goal of green pruning is to remove vigorous, upright shoots, called “Water Sprouts” which shade the tree, use much of the tree’s energy, inhibit proper development and good light penetration, leaving little for fruit growth and causing them to be tasteless and colourless. Removal of water sprouts at this time, Green Pruning will surely be rewarding; a green pruned tree doesn’t use its energy on undesirable branches but on fruits and thereby fruits become fleshy and high quality. Some trees bear fruits heavily and these are generally peaked ones; fruit trees growing sappily either show a delay of fruiting or do not bear any fruit at all. Regarding these tired trees, the best and the most correct way to strengthen them can be pruning and fertilization surely comes in second. With pruning, we can rejuvenate our trees in the shape we desire. Some trees grow very vigorously. By bending down any vigorous shoots, we make water get into branches slower and ensure fruiting. We can also prune pine species although some people urge that they not be pruned.

Conical Shaped Thuja Orientalis

Whether it is a foliage plant or a pine, there is not any species not being pruned in the world. Moreover, some pines are both pruned and shaped while the others are only shaped. Each pine requires its own way of pruning according to its condition. Yet more, we can prune blue pine trees, as well. While pruning them, it is better to cut branches that are weak or downward growing, limbs that cross or otherwise interfere with others and the ones dense, crowded, broken, damaged or poorly positioned. Pruning vigorous limbs which scuff and harm each other and cutting lateral branches which grow in a way ruining the proper shape and form will do not harm the tree but affect its health positively.

Fruit trees grow old and become tough after some time. The ones becoming old are pruned in a way which stimulates new growth and sustains them for a little more time. While pruning, aged and dry limbs are removed at the correct points on which they sprout later and produce fruits freshly. During the pruning period, by applying grafting wax at the base of tree’s branches cut back, we can prevent them from decaying and rotting off downward due to snow or rain water. In order to avoid from frost hazard in the regions having very cold winter months, some plants including rose, hortensia, grapevine should be pruned in spring months for their own health.

Pruned and Trained in Goble Shaped Milk Plum

To be able to prune trees accordingly and get the most effective results, the person to prune the tree should be very experienced, familiar with fruit and leaf buds and have technical and practical knowledge about the issue. There are few experienced nursery operators in Turkey. Unfortunately, nearly everyone taking hedge shears, a saw or a broad-axe in his hand can attempt to climb tree and cut it with a so-called high hand, which is obviously a tree massacre. Pruning trees wrongly lead them to become thin, weak, disrupted and run dry within time.

That’s what I am calling ‘poor pruning’ and generally I have been trying to summarize how to prune trees correctly in my writings. Since the year 1970 including the months of my internship and a 25- years of experience in management, I have studied related issues theoretically and practically for almost 45 years and as being one of very few and the best people accomplished at pruning in Turkey, I will try my utmost to help not only private institutions but also other municipal authorities and official bodies in an advisory capacity, particularly not to be harmful but helpful for trees.

Best Regards,

İbrahim Tınaztepe