Until recently, peaches were considered something exotic, very few could afford to feast on this fruit.
Thanks to the work of breeders, it was possible to create such peach varieties that can bear fruit even in the most unsuitable conditions for this crop.
With the right peach growing, you can get not only a very beautiful tree, but also a large number of fruits of excellent quality.
After all, these fruits are extremely useful, due to the large content of vitamins and beneficial compounds, which have a beneficial effect not only on the development of the child’s body, but also on adults.
In the process of growing trees of any culture, care should consist not only in regular watering and fertilization, but also in crown formation. After all, if the tree leaves formed incorrectly, then it will in any case affect the level of fruiting, because the leaves and excess branches will take energy from the fruit.
Pruning any fruit tree, including peach, is better when the tree has not completely “woken up” after the winter, that is, the juice of the trunk moves very weakly.
If you cut the branches at the right time, then the tree will survive such a mechanical effect very easily, and these “cuts” on the branches and the trunk will heal faster.
You must choose the time for pruning yourself, but it should be understood that at different times of the year, shortening and removing branches will affect the plant differently. For example, spring pruning should be done in order to correctly form the crown.
If the branches grow correctly, it will facilitate the process of handling and caring for the tree, the plant will also be easier to cover for the winter, and the fruits will be beautiful and tasty, it will be possible to pick them very easily.
Summer pruning is extremely rare, since it is at this time that the tree is actively developing, and much of the juice needed for the plant is moving along its veins. In summer, only those trees that have suffered from frost in the winter cold can be pruned. Such plants will clearly see the affected branches, which should be removed.
In the fall, trees are pruned in order to prepare the plant for the winter cold and for sanitary purposes. Such a procedure will not significantly affect the future process of fruiting.
You need to remove all the old, dry and diseased branches. It is in these weakened tissues during the winter that various pests can settle, the development of which can very negatively affect the health of the peach tree.
If you set a goal to cut the tree not to drastically change the shape of the crown, but to partially modify the branches, then this procedure can be carried out at any convenient time.
In general, pruning is desirable to perform in early spring, when the temperature at night does not fall below zero.
There are many types of peach pruning. Here are the most famous ones:
- Economic pruning As part of the procedure of this type, the removal of dry and damaged branches.
- Contour trim Held every year. Exposed external branches, and the volume of the crown should be limited.
- Restoration-forming pruning Necessary for the formation of skeletal and overgrown branches.
- Differentiated pruning Held for thinning the top of the crown. Lower branches need to be shortened.
- Detailed trimming All branches are shortened
As for the pruning scheme, it all depends on the form you have chosen for your peach tree. The crown can be formed cupped or improved cupped.
The cup-shaped crown does not have a central shoot, a tier of central branches, and there are only 3 or 4 of them, only one. Peach trees with a crown of this form are low, all fruits and branches get an equal large dose of sunlight.
The bowl with a cup-shaped crown reaches a length of 45 - 60 cm, but sometimes a little more. Among the side shoots need to choose 3 - 6 of the best, and they should be evenly spaced.
You need to pinch the top tip of the shoot and those branches that are located below if they have grown to 20 - 25 cm in length. In short, you need to pinch those branches that grow towards the center of the tree.
Young saplings with age need replant in the ground in springwhile leaving the length of the branches at the level of 3 - 4 buds.
The following year, from 5 - 6 shoots, you need to choose 3 - 4 branches, which will be the main. They should be evenly spaced. After you cut them, 6 - 8 fork-shaped branches will be formed.
If you decide to form a crown with an improved cup-shaped crown, then you can get more yield, and the branches will not break even under the influence of a very strong wind.
The difference between this shape and the cup is that the interval between the branches is 10 - 20 cm.
To form an improved cup-shaped crown, 3–4 main shoots should be selected, which are evenly spaced around the stem. They will need to pinch.
Also, a tree with such a crown should have a central conductor, which should be the strongest escape.
The formation of the main branches is the same as in the case of the cup-shaped crown.
To get the crown open and wide, you need to choose those shoots that form an angle of 45 degrees with the trunk.
There are many ways of pruning a peach, but the most famous of them are long and short, with a knot of substitution, pruning.
Short pruning it is necessary in order to prevent early exposure of skeletal branches and the central shoot.
If we take into account that only last year's growths come into fruiting on the peach tree, then it is necessary to create productive links on the tree. They have the form of small replacement knots with two shoots - one for replacement, the other for fruiting.
Young shoots need to be cut at the level of 2 - 3 buds, from which 2 branches will later grow. One of them cannot be shortened, that is, you can only trim a couple of centimeters of the tip. It is on this elongated shoot that the fruits will form.
The second branch should be cut very shortly - by 2 - 3 buds. After a year, 2 of them will be formed, with which you will need to repeat the described procedure. This method of pruning is aimed at controlling the growth of the tree, and also contributes to a more convenient location of future fruits.
It is also interesting to read about the best varieties of peach.
With long pruning need to remove excess flowers that can create an excessive burden on fruiting shoots and tree.
This American peach pruning method can only be done on the fourth week of tree development, since it is at this point that the size of the future peach is determined. If you do not remove the flowers at the right time, the fruits will grow small.
To cut not only the peach, but any tree, you will need garden shears, a saw, a pruner and a lopper. They must be very sharp, as with a blunt tool you only harm the plant.
As soon as spring comes, you can accurately cut your peaches correctly, causing minimal damage to the plant.
