Pruning

That time of year again.

Trim the trees

Everybody says you’ve got to trim (prune) those trees, and I agree, untrimmed apple trees look pretty ugly, so I too do it.

I’m almost done with the apple trees.

Some don’t need trimming, like pear trees, and some trees and bushes are better pruned in the summer or fall, like the prunes and plums.

Pruning

Time to prune the apple trees. 

Half done
This one’s done
As I’ve said before, I have no method. Just thin it out and trim it so it looks good. 

Pruned

I finally got the apple trees pruned. And the weather is great again. 

  

Pruning

I finally got one apple tree pruned.

There is one more old apple tree to finish pruning, and then the many new trees I’ve planted the last 5 years that need trimming.

I don’t follow any plan or teaching concerning how or when to prune, but I have read enough books and articles about it to become thoroughly confused. I just cut, snip and clip ‘intuitively’ in order to thin out and open up the tree for light, aeration and ease in picking the fruit.

My style of pruning seems to change each year.

Afternoon moon

The sky cleared today and we saw the sun shine for a while this afternoon as we were skiing. We haven’t seen the moon for a long while either. It rises early in the afternoon these days. Then the ground fog rolled in again.

You can see that the apple tree is in bad need of a pruning too. Tomorrow!