White County
 Gardening
Podcast
March 13, 2008
Pruning an overgrown apple tree
(1 minutes:
52 seconds)
 WMV (dial-up
video)
(1 minutes: 52 seconds)
 MP3 (audio
only)
Audio/Video Script:
Sherri Sanders
County Extension Agent - Agriculture
Hello this is Sherri Sanders, County Extension Agent - Agriculture in White
County.
Pruning apple trees strikes fear and in many gardeners hearts! Hello this is
Sherri Sanders, County Extension Agent – Agriculture in White county. Renovating
old, neglected apple trees is hard work! Before undertaking such a large task,
stop and ask why you're doing it. Pruning apple trees improves the tree's vigor
and fruit production. But many people find it to be complicated. Don’t worry. It
is almost impossible to kill a tree by pruning it.
Reasons for renovating old trees include:
- Encourage fruiting spurs
- Open the branches so that sunlight and air can reach all the ripening fruit
- To enhance their appearance in the landscape.
- To restore an old tree with sentimental value.
- To get better quality fruit.
Prune out any dead or diseased limbs. Then begin to remove competing branches
that cross or crowd one another. Remove branches that go straight up or hang
down. Branches that have a slight upward angle (rather than horizontal) are the
best to leave. When you're finished, the canopy should appear thinned out, with
no dense clusters of branches anywhere in the canopy.
The following tips will help you do a good job of pruning.
Do the pruning while the tree is dormant. It is best to wait until March or
April, when the threat of severe cold weather is over, but finish the job before
the tree begins to grow.
Match the size of the tools to the task. It is usually easier and better to
make a few large cuts than to make many small cuts.
Remove entire limbs and branches. Do not leave partial limbs or stubs.
Thinning out entire limbs will result in considerably less regrowth.
For additional information, contact your local County Extension office. This
has been Sherri Sanders in Searcy, Arkansas.
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