In many a garden there is still an old, rarely pruned fruit tree that hardly shows any new growth and whose fruits remain too small. Here the crown is often far too dense and hardly a ray of light reaches the interior. In such a case, the only thing that helps is a strong rejuvenation cut, in which the crown is first thinned out and finally cut back by a third.
How do I carry out rejuvenation pruning on fruit trees?
A rejuvenation cut on fruit trees consists of several steps: crown thinning, cutting back strong branches by 1-3 meters, cutting back the leading branches to deeper side branches and shortening side wood to 50 cm. The tree should then be fertilized.
Thinning out the old fruit tree crown – work steps
First, thin out the crown vigorously, working from top to bottom. Remove
- all branches that are too close together directly at the attachment points
- weak or cancerous branches
- Branches that are too close to others
Old fruit trees often have a dense tangle of shoots on the outer parts. Old branches with a lot of whorl wood should be placed back on young shoots. These usually formed on the tops of the branches. If the crown is too high and is difficult to reach, place it on lower branches. All of this pruning work can be done from November, right after the leaves fall. After pruning, the crown should have a blunt, pyramidal shape - similar to a house gable.
Do not cut back severely neglected crowns all at once
However, it is best not to cut back old trees so much all at once: otherwise strong new growth can develop on the remaining branches, the so-called water shoots. It is better to cut the trees in two to three consecutive weeks and thus prevent the strong development of these annoying shoots.
Rejuvenate fruit trees – further steps
In the case of severe baldness, it is of course not enough to simply thin out the crown. You also need to carry out these tasks:
- First lighten the crown as described.
- Now pull back all strong branches by one to three meters.
- Take the leading branches back to lower side branches.
- Always start with the weakest key.
- Now cut all the side wood back to 50 centimeters.
After cutting, the tree should definitely be fertilized heavily.
Cutting measures in the following years
In the next few years, the pruned tree will hopefully sprout heavily. Now you have to thin it out regularly and remove new shoots that are too close - if possible, water shoots should only be removed in spring or summer.
Tip
Apple, pear, sour cherry and peach in particular respond very well to rejuvenation and form strong new shoots. Sweet cherries and other stone fruits, on the other hand, sometimes react with rubbery flow. To avoid this, it is best to carry out rejuvenation pruning in the summer, immediately after harvest.
