Thursday, March 3, 2011

Time to Prune the Apple, and Other Fruit Trees.

Now is the time to trim your apple trees, flowering crabs and any other fruit bearing trees. Trimming them now is easier than when the leaves are on. This is the best time prune them to prevent any diseases or wounds entry for bugs. I know the compost center does not open til April but if you can trim now and just keep the pile of branches for a few weeks you can bring in the trimming then. Rule of thumb NEVER trim more then 1/3 of the tree. This is very important in fruit trees for if too much is trimmed off the tree will try to reproduce the lost branches which is what is replaced with water sprouts. These branches grow straight up and produce NO fruit or anything but take up space in the tree. These must be removed and keep an eye as to not cut too close to the trunk so as the cut can heal over. If the tree is too big to trim on your own, please get help so as to prevent any accidents from happening. Please stop in at the Nursery if you have more questions on proper pruning.
The greenhouse is coloring up and we can't wait for April when we will be open for the season.
Until then, check out our plant library for the plant selections we will be offering this season.

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