1. PV orchard aerial view 03

2. PRUNING AND RESTORING OLD
NEGLECTED FRUIT TREES
Michael G. Janik
ISA Certified Arborist
www.michaelsapples.com

3. Training vs. Pruning

4. My Favorite Pruning Books

5. Right tool
for the right
job
Loppers
Pruners
Saws
Clean
Sanitized
Sharp

6. Anvil vs. Bypass Shears

7. Pruning
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

8. Firewood pruning ‘03

9. Firewood Pruning ‘04

10. Firewood Tree ‘05

11. Firewood Tree ‘08

12. Firewood Tree
2010

13. Shade Apple
Open to allow
sunlight and
airflow

14. Starling Special
Dwarfing
Rootstocks
Genetic Miniatures

15. Upright growth
Acute limb angles
Spring
Bare root trees
Horizontal Scaffold
Limbs

16. HUH???
Need low,
horizontal
scaffold limbs
Do not plant
on easements

17. Garden,
Orchard
or
Yard?

18. Topping x 3

19. Natural
Target
Pruning

20. Proper pruning cut, before

21. Proper pruning cut, after

22. Well-sealed pruning scar

23. Cut back to a branch or bud

24. Open to infection

25. Natural Target Pruning II
• Always cut back to a bud or branch
• Always angle the cut away from the bud
• Choose growth direction

26. Angle cut away from bud

27. Select bud growth direction

28. Cut to a Branch, Bud, or Fruiting Spur

29. Apical Dominance
• Apical dominance is a tree’s response to
a pruning cut
• All pruning cuts cause the same
reaction in a tree
• Proper pruning uses apical dominance
to shape trees

30. Apical Dominance

31. Size control using rootstocks
• Standard—25 ft and up
• Semi-Dwarf or half-standard
– 8 to18 ft apples, pears
– 15 to 20+ ft stone fruits (cherries, plums, etc
• Genetic Dwarf/Miniatures—5-8 ft
• Varietal vigor

32. Standard Semi-Dwarf

33. Dwarf Apple Tree (must be supported)

34. Easy access to harvest

35. Pruning
Forms
for
Fruit
Trees

36. Training A Central Leader
Tree
• Apples, Pears, plums, and cherries
• Dwarf Pyramid or Pyramid
• French Axe
• Spindle Bush

37. 1st Year

38. Training Horizontal Limb Growth

39. Training using Clothespins 1st year

40. 2 year, etc; before
nd

41. 2nd year, etc; after

42. 2nd Year

43. 2yr dwarf
pyramid
pear

44. 3rd and Subsequent Years

45. Scaffold limbs, fruiting shoots

46. Cut out vigorous growth

47. Vigorous growth removed

48. Regrowth
Next Summer

49. Always remove
one of any split
shoots

50. Split Trunk

51. Thin forked branch growth

52. Mature dwarf
pyramid

53. Central
leader pear
in bloom

54. Semi-dwarf
Central
Leader

55. Supported
French Axe

56. Central Leader Pears Oregon

57. Central Leader Pears

58. Summary
Training a
Central Leader

59. Training an Open Center Tree
• Stone fruits, esp. peaches, nectarines
• Lowest limb 12-18 inches
• 3-5 limbs at low angle form a vase
shape
• Allows sunlight needed to ripen fruit

60. Training an
Open Center
Tree

61. 1yr Open Center Cherry

62. 2yr Open Center Cherry

63. Open Center
oriental pear

64. Open center peach

65. Texas peach orchard

66. Texas peach tree

67. Peach tree at Monticello

68. Winter vs. Summer Pruning
• Winter (Dormant) Pruning
– Promotes vegetative growth in the spring
– Use to train young trees
• (Late) Summer and Fall pruning
– Reduces food storage in roots and hence
reduces tree growth in spring
– Use on older, overgrown trees to open and
rejuvenate the tree.
– Use to establish fruiting spurs

70. Restoring Neglected Fruit Trees

71. Rejuvenating Neglected Trees
• Always
– Remove dead, diseased, and damaged
wood
– Remove crossing/rubbing branches
– Remove water sprouts at limb junction
– Remove suckers at the root junction
• Never
– Remove more than 20% green wood each
year
– Never fertilize

72. Arroyo 2004

73. Arroyo 2008

74. Arroyo Before After

75. 90 yr old Delicious

76. Quincy, CA apple tree
Heading Back, Apple Tree, Quincy, CA

77. Standard pear

78. Apple

79. Before After

80. After After
2nd year 3rd year

81. BEFORE AFTER

82. Semi dwarf, before

83. Semi dwarf, after

86. Red Del 09 Before

89. BEFORE AFTER

90. BEFORE AFTER

93. Apple, before

94. Apple, after

95. BEFORE AFTER

96. BEFORE AFTER

99. BEFORE AFTER

100. GRANNY SMITH
BEFORE AFTER

101. REVOVE UPRIGHT WATER SPROUTS
BEFORE AFTER

102. PEACH TREE

103. BEFORE AFTER

104. Nectarines Spring 08

105. Nectarines Summer 08

106. OPEN WELL-PRUNED PEACH

107. CHERRY TREE
BEFORE AFTER

108. BEFORE AFTER

109. Pruning for Fruit
• Apples and Pears
– Spur bearing
– Tip Bearing
• Plums and Cherries
• Nectarines and Peaches

110. Pear flower buds on spurs

111. Peach flower on last year’s growth

112. Pruning for spur fruit

113. Renewal Pruning of Spurs

114. Fruiting spurs on mature tree

115. Pruning for Peaches & Nectarines

116. Peach flower and leaf buds

117. New and old growth on peach

118. Summary
• Apical Dominance
• Cut to a branch or bud
• Choose bud/growth direction
• Training vs. Pruning
• References, Google It!
• Buy a Pruning Book and Use It!