When to prune peach trees to double the harvest
Peach is a rather whimsical tree that has a hard time surviving cold winters. However, this is not a reason to give up growing juicy fruits in your garden. Experienced gardeners emphasize that you should not ignore the important stage of spring pruning.
Standard care procedures also include fertilizing, loosening the soil, and treating for diseases and pests. OBOZ.UA has figured out how to improve the peach harvest and what should be done in early spring.
The preparatory stage
A peach tree needs regular watering, especially in spring and during the dry season. A young tree can be pruned as needed to shape its crown.
For proper and high-quality pruning, you will need the following tools and gardening equipment:
- secateurs;
- sharp knife;
- saw;
- ladder;
- putty for cuts.
When to start pruning
Spring pruning will allow you to form a high-quality young crown. After winter weather, the tree forms forks that are very fragile and weak, so they are easily damaged and broken.
Pruning should begin at the stage when the first buds appear. It is strictly forbidden to prune trees during flowering.
Peach pruning: step-by-step instructions
- Pre-sanitize the tools with alcohol or an antiseptic.
- Pruning should be done in one motion by immediately cutting off part of the shoot and in no case sawing it.
- A cut is a wound for a tree, so it needs to be treated with a solution for better healing and protection against infections.
- For a high-quality crown, it is recommended to leave four frame branches on the lower tier, which will serve as the basis. You should also leave about five branches above, expanding the next tier.
- The optimal height of a peach is 3.5 meters. If the tree is taller, it is recommended to trim the top.
- As it grows, it is worth pruning the branches from time to time as the quality of fruiting depends on this.
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