Regular pruning is important for a plum tree to keep its fruiting wood young and productive. This recommendation applies equally to Prunus domestica and its seductive subspecies, such as plums, mirabelle plums and greengages. In this tutorial you will learn everything you need to know about the different types of cuts with lots of tips and tricks.

A plum tree is usually pruned when it is leafless

Table of Contents

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  1. fruit wood
  2. Types of cuts and dates
  3. plant cutting
  4. education cut
  5. maintenance cut
  6. taper cut
  7. frequently asked Questions

    8. Fruit wood on the plum tree

    A plum tree bears the most productive fruit wood on its two and three year old branches. Under ideal site conditions, a shoot remains vital and floriferous for up to four years. After four to five years, the fruit wood of plum, greengage and mirabelle plum is exhausted. At this point, the aging branches at the back have fresh biennial side shoots to offer. Gardeners do not want to miss this opportunity and direct the old wood to the vital offspring. At the beginning of the yield phase, an annual maintenance cut is advantageous in order to clear the way for new fruiting wood.

    Types of cuts and dates

    Although a plum tree can live an impressive 50 to 100 years, its fruit wood ages after only three to four years. The fruit tree will give you a bountiful harvest of juicy, sweet plums, greengage and Mirabelle plums if you cut it every one to two years. The following overview summarizes the types of pruning with which you can build and maintain a magnificently flowering and high-yielding plum tree:

    cut type goal/occasion best appointment
    plant cutting build up a productive crown framework spring
    education cut educate perfect crown shape Late autumn or winter of the first 2 to 3 years
    maintenance cut Vital fruit wood and ideal crown shape preserved in time with the harvest or in autumn after the leaves have fallen
    taper cut revitalize old plum tree between October 1st and February 28th

    Prologue of pruning care - plant pruning

    The pruning course is set for a productive crown formation in the spring after planting. If you planted your plum tree in the fall, postpone pruning until a frost-free day in February or March. This is how you complete an exemplary pruning of plums, greengage and mirabelle plums:

    • Appoint the strongest shoot to the middle shoot with three to four evenly arranged leading branches
    • Remove excess shoots or cut back to 10 cm
    • Shorten strong leading branches by a third
    • Cut weak leading branches by half
    • Apply scissors over an outward-facing eye

    You have done everything right with the pruning when the top buds of the three to four main branches are at the same height in the so-called juice scale. This does not apply to the dominant central drive. Its top bud towers over the juice scales by 15 to 20 centimetres.

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    Pay attention to the spread and the angle of attack of the leading branches

    Beginners in the pruning of plum trees already fall victim to two common mistakes when pruning the plant. In order for a stable crown to form, the leading branches on the central shoot must be distributed in a balanced manner. In concrete terms, this means that the attachment points at different heights should be located. Furthermore, the angle to the center drive must not be too steep. A well-placed leader is at an angle of between 45° and 90° to the trunk, ideally at a 60° angle. A shoot that is too steep is spread out to the right angle. Tie up branches that are too flat with a string.

    Raise a high-yield plum tree crown

    Plum trees naturally form a narrow, upright crown. The growth is characterized by numerous steep shoots that compete with the central shoot and shade valuable fruit wood. To ensure that plums, greengage and mirabelle plums absorb a lot of sunlight and develop a full aroma, pruning care is devoted to beneficial crown training in the first few years. The education should be completed by the start of the yield phase after two or three years. How to proceed correctly:

    • The best time is after the leaves have fallen in autumn or winter on a frost-free day
    • Leave a maximum of 8 outward-facing side shoots per leading branch as future fruiting wood
    • Cut this year's growth by a third or half
    • Intersection is 5mm above an outward pointing bud
    • Cut back all other side branches to 5 to 10 cm

    The danger of sharply rising competitive instincts should not be underestimated. Above all, so-called slot knots impaired the stability within the crown. Harvesting accidents are often due to the fact that a slotted branch has broken off. So stay on the heels of steep shoots from the start and remove the danger from the crown. If a vertical shoot is in a very favorable position, tie the wood with string at an advantageous angle of 60°. The sloping position reduces the sap pressure, after which flower buds and fruit form.

    The optimal crown shape on the plum tree consists of a dominant central shoot and three to four evenly distributed main branches. Infertile, disturbing steep shoots are consistently removed. The buds of the leading branches should be in juice scales. The top bud on the central shoot towers 15 to 20 centimeters above the side branches.

    Preserve vital fruit wood

    A plum tree in the fruiting phase will benefit from a maintenance pruning every one to two years. Gardeners like to combine the pruning with the plum harvest, because at this point the fruit wood that has been removed is easy to recognize. The crown is clearer after the leaves have fallen in autumn or winter. The greatest treasure in the plum tree are the two- and three-year-old fruit shoots. These are easy to identify by the spherically shaped flower buds that are already established during the current season. In contrast, shoots and leaf buds are revealed by a narrow, elongated shape. How to cut with gardening expertise:

    • Cut back prominent drooping fruit shoots to a biennial side shoot with flower buds
    • Shorten fast-growing fruit shoots to 10 cm cones to compete with the main branch
    • Cut back steep shoots, inward branches and stunted branches to 5 to 10 cm
    • Massively ramified main branches with broom-like tips slim down with a derivation cut

    This year's unbranched young shoots are treated with caution. In the rarest of cases, flower buds can already be found here. Cut back a branch more than 20 centimeters long by a third until just before an outward-facing bud. Shorter young shoots remain uncut.

    Unfavorable and dead branches are removed on short cones. Older fruit wood that has been worn off several times leads you to a young, outward-facing side branch that already has flower buds.

    tips

    A plum tree sprout numerous water shoots from spring to autumn. The vertical shoots form from the rootstock of the wild rootstock, below the crown or on the top of the leading branches. As long as the unwanted shoots are in the unwoody stage, they should be removed. Either tear off a shoot of water or cut off the shoot just before the bark.

    Makeover for old plum tree

    Without an annual maintenance pruning, a plum tree is exhausted within a few years. Since the young fruit wood has no access to sunlight, the crown on the inside becomes bare. The outer branches are characterized by massive ramifications, the weight of which pulls the wood towards the ground. With a makeover cut, you can turn back the wheel of time. This applies under the premise of a restrained cut. The diameter of the old branches to be removed should not be more than half the diameter of the main branch or trunk. How to properly rejuvenate an old plum tree:

    • The best time is between October 1st and March 1st in frost-free weather
    • First remove steep shoots with an angle of less than 45° to the trunk or central shoot
    • Cut out dead, inward growing, crossing or rubbing branches
    • Cut branches thicker than 5 cm into 10 cm long cones
    • Overhanging branches lead to an indoor, two-year-old side shoot
    • Cut back heavily branched old shoots without young side shoots to 10 cm short cones
    • Do not cut sloping, horizontal, unbranched young shoots

    Derived pruning plays a key role in the skilled rejuvenation of plum trees. In principle, plums, greengage and mirabelle plums do not respond well to radical pruning. They successfully mitigate the effects by redirecting old shoots to a young, outward-facing side shoot. Ideally, it is biennial wood garnished with flower buds. Position pruning shears or saw where old and young wood fork. Do not cut into the young shoot, but into the old wood a few millimeters behind the fork.

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    Cut old wood gently with tenon cutting

    One of the advantageous pruning techniques when pruning fruit trees is the tenon pruning. On the plum tree, old wood tends to dry out deeply on larger cuts. This increases the risk of fungal infections and rot. By cutting a thick, old branch down to tenons, you avoid the dilemma. Leave a 4 to 6 inch stub. Smooth the wound with a knife and spread the edges of the wound with tree wax. In the following 2 to 3 years, young shoots form at the base of the cone. This is the signal to remove the last remains of the cone in summer. Thanks to this approach, your plum tree will be able to close the wound better and faster.

    frequently asked Questions

    Are plum trees self-fertile?

    As a rule, plums thrive as self-fertile trees. Some historical varieties, on the other hand, depend on a pollinator. Ask carefully when purchasing in tree nurseries and garden centers. In principle, it is advantageous for the crop yield if two plum varieties are in close proximity. If there is a lack of space, this can also be a columnar plum.

    At the end of March I planted my first plum tree. Is it really necessary to carry out a training cut this spring?

    In fact, it is advisable to prune a plum tree in the first spring. The tree is well positioned for a high yield with a central shoot and up to four main branches, which are at an advantageous 60° angle to the trunk. Surplus shoots are removed. Then shorten the skeletal shoots by half so that they are in the juice scale. Leave the center drive a little higher. It is important to note that the buds of the leading branches point outwards.

    I want to plant a grafted greengage tree in the garden. Should the grafting site be above or below ground?

    The grafting point on greengage tree always remains above ground. With all plum trees for the home garden, there is a risk that the noble variety will take root on its own. In this way, the good properties of the underlay are lost.

    Is it possible to limit a plum tree to a height of 2 meters?

    Like all plum trees, mirabelle plums are stone fruits. Strong growth towards the light is characteristic of these fruit trees. As a result, plum trees grow quite tall. Well-planned upbringing and regular pruning will help control growth. However, a growth height of at least 2.50 to 3 meters is realistic. If there is a lack of space in the garden, it is advisable to cultivate mirabelle plums as columnar fruit.

    I underestimated the strong growth of a plum tree and would like to transplant it. When is the best time? What should I pay particular attention to?

    Within the first five years it is possible to transplant a plum tree without further ado. The best time is in the fall, when harvest and leaf fall are complete. Dig up the root ball as widely as possible. There should not have been any plums, greengage or Mirabelle plums at the new location beforehand, otherwise there is a risk of soil fatigue. A plum tree copes better with the change of location if you cut back the crown by a third or half before or after. In this way you compensate for the lost root mass.

    The 3 most common cutting mistakes

    If a young plum tree consistently refuses to display picturesque blooms and juicy fruit, or if regeneration results in total failure, the gardener has made typical pruning errors. In order to protect the readers of this tutorial from classic errors, the following overview draws attention to common mistakes and gives tips on how to prevent the annoyance:

    cutting error damage picture prevention
    no educational cut dense, tautly upright crown without flowers or fruits educate with a central drive and 4 leading branches at an ideal 60° angle
    never cut premature aging, exhausted fruit wood, little yield pruning every 1 to 2 years and rejuvenating fruiting wood
    old plum tree cut back radically Spread of wood rot, total failure moderately tapered by derivation or tenon pruning
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    tips

    Recommended dates for a rejuvenation cut in summer fall on deaf ears with responsible home gardeners. In the dense crown of the old plum tree, things get busy during the warm season. Busy bird parents like to build their nests in the shelter of the foliage to devote themselves to the rearing of their offspring. Radical cutting measures would have fatal consequences for the already threatened bird life. Section 39 of the Federal Nature Conservation Act emphasizes the requirement for a grace period. Between March 1st and September 30th, pruning of any kind is prohibited.

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Trees