When and how to properly prune a pear and form a crown for beginners

Some gardeners are perplexed: why waste time pruning pear trees? The tree bears fruit regularly, but it is a pity to remove excess branches. If you suddenly have too much, the tree will completely stop bearing fruit and become weaker. But regular pruning is simply necessary for the tree. Without it, a cultivated plant will not be able to produce a good harvest. It is this operation that stimulates the growth of fruits and allows sunlight to pass through the crown. But these actions should be carried out competently.

Methods and types of pruning

In order to always have a good harvest, it is recommended to carry out sanitary and formative pruning of the pear. Sanitation is done to remove damaged or dried branches. These parts of the plant are useless and even dangerous for him: pests parasitize them and fungi grow on them. This operation can be performed at any time of the year.

But the pear requires crown formation. The tree has high growth energy. And the gardener should make life easier for himself: limit the size of the tree, thin out its crown for ease of care and harvesting of fruits. Summer residents are wondering: is it always necessary to trim the lower branches of a tree? This operation is carried out to remove old branches or to facilitate maintenance: it should be convenient to move under the tree while weeding or fertilizing.

How do pear trees react to pruning?

The tree will respond to properly pruned trees with an increase in fruit branches and fruit size. If you shorten the crown, the plant will redirect energy to the formation of side shoots, that is, it will begin to grow in width. This plant is easy to care for.

Removing shoots that thicken the crown will allow even illumination of ripening fruits. Their taste will improve (the sugar content will increase).

Improper pruning will weaken the plant. The tree will strive to restore the too sparse crown and will stop forming fruit buds.

The exception is anti-aging pruning. During this process, the pear is severely pruned and put into a state of stress.The adult plant responds to it with abundant fruiting. But sometimes this event causes the death of a tree.

Required Tools

In order to quickly and efficiently perform pruning, you should prepare the tools. You will need:

• pruning shears for thin branches (up to 0.7 mm in diameter);
• hacksaw for removing large shoots;
• lopper for working in hard-to-reach places;
• disinfectant solution (potassium permanganate, boric acid, alcohol) for treating instruments;
• garden varnish or oil paint (for processing sections with a diameter of more than 0.7 mm);
• sharp knife (for cleaning cuts to avoid the formation of stumps);
• stepladder (for working with tall trees);
• work gloves.

It is important to remember: during pruning, infection penetrates through wounds, so tools should be disinfected.

When is the best time to prune tree shoots and branches?

There are no clear deadlines for pruning. Sanitation is carried out at any time. After strong winds, be sure to remove damaged shoots. For formative pruning, it is necessary to choose a time when sap flow has stopped. This is late autumn, winter, early spring.

Spring and summer work

In early spring, it is recommended to cut out the tops, which take away the strength of the pear. Before sap flow begins, a crown can be formed. If the branches grow upward, then a little treatment is carried out in the summer. During ripening and fruiting, branches that shade the pears can be removed.

In July, it is recommended to pinch (shorten by 1/3) young shoots. This event will force the pear to redirect its forces to the formation of additional fruit buds, instead of leaf buds.

Autumn pruning of pear

In autumn, the fruits have already been collected, the leaves have fallen, and the sap flow has stopped.It is recommended to carry out crown formation combined with sanitary pruning (if necessary). It is important to remember: work is carried out in dry weather, since during rain the wounds can get infected.

Carrying out work in winter

Some gardeners prefer to pinch pear crowns in winter. This is due to the availability of free time and the absence of bacterial infections.

But it should be understood that removing frozen wood is dangerous for the tree. And the garden varnish is applied to the cut when it is heated, and the temperature contrast is undesirable. Winter work with pear crowns is carried out at an air temperature of at least -5 degrees Celsius. And there should be no precipitation at this time.

Pruning a young pear

The purpose of the operation is to create a skeleton with which the gardener will subsequently work. For beginning gardeners, it is important to do it correctly, since correcting mistakes will be quite difficult.

For the first year

When planting, the pear seedling should be “treated” with pruning shears. The top needs to be trimmed by 1/4. This will stimulate the growth of side shoots.

The first pruning involves removing branches adjacent to the top “into a ring.” The lower branches should be left at a height of 50-60 cm from the soil level, the rest should be cut out. It is necessary to maintain a distance of 10-15 cm between branches in different directions.

During the growth process, the pear forms a regular skeleton that is convenient to work with.

In the second year

In the second year, the formation of a tiered crown begins. The formation of the 1st tier of the crown of a two-year-old pear continues according to the same principles:

• shoots adjacent to the top are cut out;
• the top is cut by 1/3;
• the lateral processes of the skeletal branches are shortened;
• all shoots growing inside the crown are removed;
• Crossing branches are cut out.

A two-year-old pear is thus prepared for the formation of fruit buds. When planting a tree in shaded areas or limited space in the garden, you can form a palmette: a flat crown. Then the distance between planting pear trees can be reduced by 2 times. And the plants will be illuminated perfectly.

Pruning a three-year-old pear

Immediately after planting in the first 3 years, a layered crown is formed. But only in the 3rd year can the 2nd tier be laid. It is formed at a distance of 50-60 cm from the skeletal branches of the 1st tier. The principles of creation are the same as those of the 1st tier.

Pruning a four-year-old pear

During this period, the gardener finishes forming the 3rd tier of the crown. The skeletal branches of the third tier are separated from the branches of the second tier by 50-60 cm. The shoots adjacent to the top are cut out. Shoots that cross and thicken the crown are removed or shortened.

Rejuvenating pruning of an old pear

Old pears stop producing a bountiful harvest. But the gardener is not ready to part with them. Fruiting can be restored if the tree is rejuvenated. Trimming scheme:

• shorten the top;
• remove old, diseased branches;
• thin out the crown;
• remove competing shoots;
• shorten branching shoots.

This is a fairly harsh remedy. But in some cases, the pear begins to bear fruit abundantly.

How to correctly form the crown of a columnar pear?

This pear requires regular pruning to maintain its special crown shape. The correct operation is to prevent an excessive number of fruit buds: in the first year, all flowering shoots are removed, in the second, 2-3 are left.

The branches of a columnar tree are shortened to prevent them from growing wider. Those that grow at an obtuse angle to the trunk are cut out.The purpose of the event: maintaining the shape of the crown. Particular attention is paid to the central conductor. The upper bud is regularly inspected to determine whether it has been damaged by pests or disease. When a lesion is identified, the shoot is cut out and a new conductor is formed from replacement shoots.

Peculiarities of pear pruning in various regions, including Siberia

Pruning rules vary slightly by region. Before carrying out the operation, you should take into account the winter hardiness of the pear. If the tree is prone to freezing, then autumn or winter formative pruning should not be carried out. Siberia has a cold climate with strong winds. And the warm period is short. Not all pear shoots ripen, which means they will certainly freeze in winter. This will weaken the plant. Immature (light green) shoots must be cut out or shortened to mature wood.

In a region with cold winters, like in Siberia, it is not recommended to perform autumn and winter operations to form the crown, so as not to reduce the winter hardiness of the pear. But sanitary pruning can be carried out at any time of the year. You should also refrain from anti-aging pruning. Its principle: put an old tree under stress in order to force it to bear fruit. But during a long, cold winter, the pear is unlikely to survive the unfavorable period.

In regions with a warm climate, pruning is done at any time convenient for the gardener (taking into account the timing of sap flow and fruiting).

Common Mistakes

Illiterate pruning of a pear can not only delay fruiting for an indefinite period of time, but also destroy the tree. The most common mistakes gardeners make:

• leave the top unpruned (the tree grows tall and is difficult to care for, including pruning);
• violate the rules for cutting shoots “into a ring” (a knot is formed, then a hollow, the pear needs treatment);
• the operation is performed in the rain (infection penetrates into the wounds and diseases develop);
• they work with dirty tools (gardeners themselves infect their favorite trees);
• violate the principles of the formation of tiers (this leads to thickening of the crown and a decrease in yield);
• leaving large cuts untreated (the tree cannot quickly heal them and remains open to infection);
• apply too thick a layer of garden varnish (under this film the wood begins to warm up).

Any of the above violations leads to weakening or disease of the tree. This affects the harvest.