A step-by-step guide to pruning felt cherries in summer for beginners

Gardeners love felt cherries for a good harvest, ease of maintenance and a beautiful compact crown. To increase fruiting, the plant is cut not only in autumn and spring, but also in summer. If you know the technique and haircut patterns, the work will not cause difficulties.

Is it possible to prune felt cherries in summer

If the weather is consistently warm, the humidity level is high, and too much nitrogen was added during feeding, felted cherry many young shoots are formed. They will take food from the berries, do not have time to grow and die in winter. In this case, summer pruning is carried out.

Pruning goals

The main objectives of the procedure:

• formation of the correct crown shape;
• plant rejuvenation;
• prevention of uneven development;
• ensuring good illumination and ventilation of the crown;
• prevention of early aging of cherries;
• increasing the quality and quantity of the crop;
• removal of non-fruiting shoots.

Summer pruning is carried out only when absolutely necessary, for example, when branches are broken or young shoots have begun to grow too much.

When to prune cherries in summer

The procedure is carried out in early June, when the cherries have just begun to pour. If you don't make it in time, it is better to postpone the haircut to July, after the harvest. This will protect the tree after the onset of frost.

Auspicious days

Pruning is always carried out only on a sunny and dry day: this way the risk of introducing fungal diseases will be minimal.

Immediately after removing excess branches, the wounds are treated with garden varnish or emulsion paint. Ordinary clay is an alternative.

Types of trimming

Felt cherry grows up to 2-3 m in height and resembles a small tree.

Therefore, all types of pruning are applied to it, as for ordinary cherries:

1. Formative. Crown formation schemes are universal and applicable for any type of cherry and growing region. A feature of this method is fruiting on bouquet branches. They give a crop for 5 years, but only if their length is more than 30 cm.
2. Regulatory. Spend every year removing thickening branches.
3. Restorative. It is performed after an unsuccessful wintering, when many branches are damaged by frost. They are removed completely.
4. Anti-aging. They are first carried out when the tree is 8-9 years old. The need for the procedure is indicated by a decrease in the length of one-year growth to 20 cm and exposure of the ends of the shoots. Rejuvenating pruning is performed not in one go, but within 2-3 years.

How to prune a tree correctly

A haircut ensures that enough sun gets into the crown and normal air circulation. It is important to do it correctly so as not to damage the tree.

Required materials and tools

To trim you need:

• secateurs for thin branches;
• lopper for branches up to 2.5 cm in diameter, which are in the depth of the crown;
• garden saw.

All tools are disinfected in advance to prevent infection from entering the plant. They are calcined over a fire or wiped with a cloth moistened with alcohol.

Additionally, a garden var or oil paint is prepared for processing slices.

Pruning schemes

In the summer, dry and damaged branches are removed that can harm the tree.

Attention! Particular attention is paid to diseased shoots: they are not simply cut off, but burned to kill the infection.

After fruiting, young shoots are partially removed from felt cherries so that new ovaries and buds appear next year. This is done only in regions with a warm climate. In the north of the country, they are limited to sanitary pruning. Forming is transferred from summer to spring.

In summer, shoots are pinched that did not have time to stiffen. Young branches are removed at the earliest stage. If this is not done in time, you will have to remove the stiff shoots, and this is worse for the tree.

Step-by-step instruction

Pruning felt cherries in summer involves several steps:

1. The crown is examined and thinned out every year. All thickening and damaged branches are removed.
2. The buds are found along the entire length of the shoots, so they are cut off completely.
3. The branches that grow upward are pruned 1/3 so that the cherry does not grow too tall.
4. About a third of the side branches are cut, and the rest are shortened by 3 buds.

All cut sites are treated with garden varnish or other means for wound healing.

Features of pruning depending on the age of the tree

Cherry crown begins to form in the first year after planting.

To create the shape of an annual plant, do the following:

1. Provides balance in the ratio of the root system and the aerial part. 5 strong skeletal processes are left on the seedling, which are located at a distance of at least 10 cm from each other. Everything else is cut off completely.
2. In overly tall seedlings, the center conductor is cut off. If the height of the tree is more than 1 m, the top is shortened to 80 cm.
3. In the first year, thin processes are removed. Long lateral branches are pruned by 15 cm. Skeletal branches should not be higher than the central one.

In the next 4 years, pruning consists only in removing thickening shoots. To do this, remove all the branches growing inside the crown.

The branched part is fully formed by 5 years. Such plants are sanitized as they overgrow.

Depending on the region of cultivation

Depending on the climate and weather conditions in a particular region, the dates vary slightly.

In the southern parts of Russia, pruning is carried out in June, and in the middle lane and northern regions in July.

Further care of the plant

After pruning, sections of old and young branches are equally vulnerable and require disinfection. For this, various means are used to isolate damage from the external environment.

Most often used:

• garden pitch;
• oil paint based on drying oil;
• special paste or putty.

The products prevent bacteria and insects from entering the wound, reduce the loss of fluid in the tree in the first hours after pruning.

Important! Before covering up the wounds, carefully remove all the irregularities. The product is applied with a spatula to a dry surface.

Some gardeners use the Novosil biostimulator to increase the plant's defenses after pruning. Dilute 3 ml of the drug in a bucket of water. The solution is poured over the trunk circle.

Experienced gardening tips

The main recommendations of summer residents:

1. During frosts, gum appears on the stumps, so the cut is done carefully to reduce the likelihood of stumps.
2. Branches are formed from the center outward.
3. Even insufficiently strong cherries are pruned, but in this case the amount of work is minimal. Basically, they only thin out the crown.
4. Thickened areas are thinned out strongly, and dry areas are removed completely. To prevent the multiplication of pathogens, all cut branches are removed from the site and burned.
5. When the cherry grows very quickly, it is limited to pruning the top branches. This allows the crown to form correctly.

It is interesting:

Step-by-step instructions: how to grow a felt cherry from a stone at home

Instructions for transplanting cherries in the summer to another place for novice gardeners

How to properly and how to spray apple trees from pests in summer

Conclusion

Summer pruning of felt cherries is considered an adjunct procedure, but should not be neglected. During development, new shoots form rapidly in a young plant; if not removed, fruiting will be at risk.

In summer, it is important to remove thickening, dry and diseased shoots. The procedure is usually carried out in July, the wounds must be treated with a disinfectant.