How to properly prune dwarf apple trees?

Recently, almost all over the world, everyone who is engaged in fruit cultivation gives preference to dwarf trees. And the apple tree is no exception in this case. Dwarf orchards offer considerable advantages over strong-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 low-growing apple trees.

Features of pruning dwarf apple trees

Low-growing apple trees need to be pruned just as much as regular ones. The crown must be trimmed in order 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, naturally, begins to receive less nutrients from the soil. Therefore, you should remove some of the foliage so that the remaining branches and leaves are fully nourished. But if the crown is significantly reduced, the roots in this case will receive less nutrients from the foliage and, ultimately, will die off. Therefore, it is so important to properly trim the crown.

It is necessary to carry out pruning in accordance with all the rules. Once you make a mistake, it is sometimes impossible to fix it in the future. Some gardeners discourage pruning. However, this is fundamentally wrong. Indeed, 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 of their awakening in the spring. Connoisseurs of gardening know that the upper buds begin to bloom immediately on most apple trees. It is they who will subsequently give you an active growth, which is called the continuation escape. The apple tree also has a competitive shoot. It is located next to the upper kidney and can overtake the apical buds.

The buds located at the end of the shoot will give young shoots, and those located in the middle will develop much later, and you should not expect a large number of shoots from them. By removing the upper buds, you will cause the development of the middle ones, and only then will they be able to give strong shoots.

Before pruning dwarf apple trees, you need to understand the features of the kidneys. During pruning, you should leave exactly those that are capable of affecting growth and forming a crown.

We form the crown

It is advisable that pruning is carried out in the fall or spring, while the young shoots have not yet begun to actively grow. It is necessary to take into account the variety and features of the development of seedlings. After all, it will depend on which - external or internal, kidney you will be pruning. If your goal is to enlarge 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, branches of any tree develop unevenly. Among them there are both the weak and the 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 the branches so that the strong branches are lower than the weak ones. This is achieved with the help of a certain pruning. If you regulate the growth and formation of branches in young dwarf apple trees 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.

Pruning should be stronger during fruit growth. After all, the branches are quite quickly and strongly overloaded under the influence of the fruits. And this, in the end result, will negatively affect both the quality of the fruit and the stability of fruiting. To avoid this, try to immediately rejuvenate those branches that are overgrown.

Rootstock pruning

Trimming 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, young shoots are cut out with the onset of spring. 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 do the shoots in the summer - this will also contribute to the successful laying of new formations. And the result is 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 withstand a rich harvest with dignity. With age, through pruning, we maintain a small tree growth and also increase the size and quality of the fruit.

Pinching shoots

Pinching (pinching) is considered one of the important elements of pruning in the summer. It consists in removing non-lignified young shoots. It is better to carry out this procedure in the summer. Usually this manipulation is carried out by hand, pinching off part of the shoot (hence the second name), but sometimes they use a pruner if it is necessary to remove a large, main part of the shoot. They pinch young shoots only when buds wake up close to the leader branch, or when an unwanted shoot appears, which will contribute to the incorrect formation of the crown of your pet. Pinning of the newly formed shoots 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 is lignified in the lower part, you can get rid of it with a pruner.

By pinching in the summer, you will help the tree retain nutrients and channel them into foliage growth and axillary bud growth and development. 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 trunk (trunk), the weaker and vice versa.

If you started the first pinching with the onset of June, then the next one should be carried out in early July. If the third pinning is needed, then it will have to be carried out in August, but there is a risk. Young shoots may not have time to ripen and the winter cold will destroy them.

If pinching is done correctly, then the exuberant and active growth of developing young branches can be reduced. As a result, small and weak growth will be strengthened. Timely pinching has a significant effect on the growth and development of the tree. Remember, pinching is carried out until the shoot has stopped 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 pinching is not allowed to be applied to it.

Thinning of fruits

As you know, a large number of fruits are tied in a low-growing apple tree. And this negatively affects the well-being of the tree, because, spending the reserves of nutrients to maintain the fruits, it is greatly depleted. And the quality of the fruits themselves also suffers: the color of the apple will be bad, insufficient, let alone the size. To avoid this, they carry out a saving thinning of the ovaries. After this procedure, only as many fruits are left as the tree can provide with decent nutrition.Such fruits will have excellent characteristics. And in the end result, you can get a good harvest of fairly high-quality and large fruits. And the growth of branches due to the redistribution of food will only increase annually. The complex and rational use of thinning with fertilization 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 carry out thinning after the June fall of excess ovaries. Once that happens, know it's time to start thinning. First, shake each branch so that the loose ovaries fall off on their own. In the process of thinning, diseased, deformed or small fruits are also disposed of. Only healthy and best specimens are left.

After reading this article, you have learned how and why correct pruning is necessary. By limiting the growth of the crown, you allow the tree to concentrate its energy on the fruits, and the results will not be long in coming. Your apple stock will bear fruit and delight you.

Pruning dwarf apple trees (Video)

In this video you will learn about features of pruning apple trees-dwarfs