Pear pruning terms: how to help a tree, not destroy it

Since pruning is an important agro-technical stage of pear care, the gardener needs to know the exact timing and sequence of its implementation. To maintain the crown in proper form, the procedure can be carried out almost at any time of the year, however, some features depend on the choice of the season.

Standard pear pruning times

There are several types of pruning fruit trees, including pears. Each of them is carried out on time.

Table: types and terms of pear pruning

Depending on the season, this or that type of pruning is carried out.

Spring pruning pears

Most types of pruning are performed in early spring. To more specifically determine the optimal period, two factors are taken into account: weather conditions and the condition of the tree:

• By the time of pruning, severe frosts should already be left behind, but this does not mean that they are unacceptable at all. This is the time when spring has not yet fully taken over, and periods of lowering temperatures to -10 ... -15 ° C are not excluded. But they will no longer be long and will not have a detrimental effect on the health of the tree. More exact terms depend on the region - in Siberia it can be the first half and even the end of April, in the Middle lane - the end of March - the beginning of April, and pruning in the southern regions is allowed in February.
• It is highly undesirable for the tree to wake up and grow at the time of the procedure. At such times, wounds inflicted on the plant will exude juice and poorly heal. This will weaken the tree, may cause it to be infected with gummosis (gum will flow from the trunk and branches). It will better tolerate return frosts than late pruning. The onset of sap flow is determined by the swelling of the kidneys. At this time, pruning can still be done, but if the first leaves began to appear, the moment is missed.
  

  If the pruning is incorrect, gummosis may appear on the pear.

My cottage is located in a suburb of Lugansk. This is the east of Ukraine, so the climate here is identical to the conditions of Central Russia. On March 26, I pruned fruit trees, including two pears. The air temperature during the day was +5 ° C, at night -5 ° C. According to the weather forecast, frosts were still possible, but they weren’t scary. I must say that I was almost late with the pruning time, as the buds on the tree had already begun to swell slightly. I should have done this 2-3 weeks earlier. But the sap flow by that time had not yet begun, so I hope everything will be fine. I did the sanitary pruning in November, I think that this is the best time for the Middle Strip and the east of Ukraine.

Video: pear pruning in spring

Autumn pruning pears

In the fall, only one type of pruning is carried out - sanitary. They do this in late October or early November, when the pear goes into a state of rest. At this time, dry, damaged and diseased branches are removed, which are then burned.

Pear pruning in summer

In the first half of summer, during the period of rapid growth of young shoots, supportive pruning of the pear is carried out. It is called so because its goal is to maintain a stable and high yield tree. For this, the coinage method is used. It consists in shortening young and green shoots by 5-10 cm. Such a simple operation provokes the appearance of additional growing branches on the shoots - fruiting of the pear occurs on them. Most often, fruit buds are laid on the annulus (short shoots with underdeveloped buds) and spears (short shoots, tapering to the apex and ending in a kidney).

Winter pear pruning

Winter pruning of a pear is not recommended, since weakening the tree reduces its winter hardiness. It is worth waiting until spring and with pruning seedlings, which at that time were laid in storage in the basement or buried in the ground.

Moon calendar

Some gardeners adhere to the lunar calendar when performing agricultural work. In this case, in addition to the indicated methods for determining the timing of cropping, you must also take into account the phases of the moon. Usually they try not to cut in the phase of the rising moon, since at this time the juices are directed upwards, and the wounds inflicted on the branches heal worse.

Table: lunar tree pruning calendar for 2018

All major pear pruning is done in early spring. Therefore, the gardener should plan them in advance, prepare the necessary tools and materials. A competent and responsible approach to this stage of tree care is the key to high crop productivity.