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When should plum trees be pruned?
Pruning plum trees in spring or summer enables the tree’s pruning wounds to heal before the spores of silver leaf disease become active during the damp months of autumn and winter. Young plum trees (up to three years old) are best lightly pruned in spring.
Do I need to trim my plum tree?
Young plums are generally pruned in early spring, before bud break, in order to avoid infection by silver leaf disease. Begin pruning immediately when you plant a young tree to ensure a proper shape. Established fruit tree plums are best pruned in midsummer. Trimming flowering plum trees is not advised.
How do I prune my plum tree?
Pruning the young plum tree is easy. Wait until new growth is 3 inches long. Cut the main stem back until it is 2 feet tall, making the cut just above a bud. Once you’ve trimmed the height, if there are competing leaders, or stems that are very close to the main stem, cut them off completely flush with the main stem.
What happens if you don’t prune a fruit tree?
If a tree has been neglected or improperly pruned in the previous season, it sets out more fruit than it can support, so you must thin the fruit to prevent broken branches and support healthy growth of the remaining fruit. Some species drop their fruit to naturally thin out the crop, such as citrus, figs and cherries.
What can I do with an overgrown pear tree?
Overgrown, large trees
- First, remove all dead, diseased and broken branches.
- Lower branches that receive little light and obstruct passage should be removed entirely or pruned to a more upright shoot.
- Remove branches growing into the centre of the crown and also any crossing branches.
When is the best time to prune a plum tree?
Pruning too much in late winter can lead to vegetative overgrowth and reduced fruit production. Cut the tree to size after planting. It’s important to prune a young tree during its first dormant season to encourage good growth and a suitable shape. As soon as possible after planting, cut it down so that it’s only about 30 inches (76.2 cm) high.
What should I do if my plum tree is not producing fruit?
Prune branches that don’t bear fruit. If you notice a branch or two that don’t seem to be producing fruit, you may want to remove them. Make your cut flush with the tree’s trunk, rather than just cutting back to a bud, since new growth on the same branch isn’t likely to produce different results.
How big of a branch do you need to cut a plum tree?
The tree will look and fruit best if you make each cut at a good-sized lateral branch with a diameter at least one-third of the diameter of the branch you are cutting. Although some trees withstand major height pruning without too much trouble, plums have a hard time sprouting new lower branches through their thick bark.
How big should a three year old plum tree be?
Below this cut, there should be at least three branches. Prune these branches to 10 inches, on an angle, immediately above a healthy bud. Prune three-year-old trees in a similar fashion by trimming the main stem to 18 inches above a bud. Trim the three or four branches immediately below to 10 inches.