Pruning Time

May sees the beginning of our Cooler months and therefore the time of year to begin pruning Fruit trees .

Firstly make sure you have the right tools for the job ,this means sharp Saws, Loppers andf Secateurs . For bigger cuts have some pruning paste or water based paint to seal cut and of course your Greenie Garden Bin  for those branches 100mm or less .

In Auckland Summerfruit [ Plums ,Peaches and Nectarines ]can be pruned from late summer onwards  after fruiting has finished . However do not leave pruning stonefruit till winter as it can cause the spread of silverleaf ,so if you have not done your Summerfruit pruning yet – GET ON WITH IT !

Prune on a dry day , to limit spread of fungal spores & diseases . Cuts should always be on a 45 degree sloping angle so water doesn’t pool & always cut above a bud or if removing entire shoots cut close to main branch.

The above techniques used to prune Summerfruit  can be used on pipfruit which can be pruned in winter.

And of course what to do with those prunings – as mentionedanything 100mm in diameter or smaller ,simply cut down branches to fit into our Greenie Bin and we’ll do the rest . For the bigger branches use for fire wood either for you ,neighbours or family

Cheers

#Greeniebins   #pruningnz  #summerfruitnz