Pruning
- Refer to any good gardening book for basic principles for other kinds of fruit trees or visit the Royal Horticultural Society website to see their excellent advice pages at www.rhs.org.uk
‘Normal’ straight stem tree
- For a normally shaped tree, with a single main stem and side branches radiating, simply pinch out the growing tip at around 1.2 metres to encourage side branches to grow.
- In December, years 2 & 3 after planting, prune back each branch by about one third to a bud on the underside of the branch that is pointing out and away from the tree centre. The aim is to promote a strong, open, well balanced framework.
- After year 3 or 4, little pruning should be necessary other than to remove any dead, damaged or diseased wood and any branches / twigs that are crossing, rubbing or growing inwards towards the centre of the tree.
‘Bush’ tree
- For a bush tree, with an open centre, simply remove the growing tip at 75cm to encourage a ‘goblet’ shape to develop. Keep the centre of the tree clear of growth. There should be no main central stem, rather a number of branches radiating out, forming the ‘bush’ shape.
Prune apple trees when they are dormant – December is a good time.