Top Fruit - Tree forms, pruning and feeding

1. RHS Level 2 Certificate
WEEK 23 ON LINE LESSON- TOP FRUIT PART 2 TREE FORMS,
PRUNING, TRAINING AND FEEDING

2. Top Fruit Tree Forms
Unrestricted – standard and half standard and bush forms. These are
grown on semi-dwarfing or vigorous root stocks, winter pruned
(except for Plums which are only pruned in Summer)
Restricted – espalier, cordon, fan. Grown on dwarfing or semi-
dwarfing rootstocks and summer pruned.

3. Advantages and disadvantages of restricted forms
Advantages: Fruit earlier than unrestricted forms. More fruit/more
varieties for less space. Easier to spray and harvest. Will fit into
small spaces.
Disadvantages: Grown on dwarfing stocks that need better soil and
tolerate drought less well. Need more skill to prune. Tip bearing
varieties of apple cannot be grown in this way.

4. Pruning - winter
Winter pruning is used for unrestricted tree forms. It promotes growth and
encourages fruit buds to form.
Apples and pears (spur fruiting). Reduce new growth on branch leaders by 1/3.
Prune laterals to 3-4 buds. Thin spurs if too congested. Remove unproductive
shoots and water shoots and any dead, diseased or crossing wood. Can you throw
your hat through the tree?
Tip bearing apples – reduce branch leaders as before. Leave laterals that have fruit
buds at the tip. Prune any others to 3-4 buds from the base of the new growth to
encourage fruiting laterals to develop. Remove dead, diseased etc wood as before.

5. Pruning - Summer
Used to prune top fruit grown in restricted forms – cordons,
espaliers, fans etc. Plums grown as trees are also pruned in
summer.
Apples and pears in restricted forms. Shorten leaders to 2-3cm new
growth. Prune laterals to 3 buds. Thin spurs. Remove any shoots
that are growing the ‘wrong way’ e.g. into the wall.
Plums – tree forms. Remove dead, diseased and crossing wood and
prune as necessary to control size by removing branches.
Plums – Fans. Prune as for restricted apples.

6. Pruning for yield
Pruning apples and pears encourages fruit bud formation. Winter
pruning of trees reduces fungal disease and prevents fruit being
shaded.
Spur reduction – to ensure that fruits are not overcrowded and to
give larger fruit.
Fruit thinning – two stages until two to three well spaced fruit left
per cluster. Fewer but larger fruit produced.

7. Feeding
Nitrogen – encourages leafy growth. Limited requirement unless on
dwarf stock in restricted form.
Phosphorous – promotes root development and cold hardiness.
Some supplementation required.
Potassium – promotes fruit formation. Likely to need feeding in
winter by applying Sulphate of Potash or wood ash to the base of
each tree. Do not overdose.
Calcium – deficiency causes Bitter Pit in apples and pears. Applied in
liquid form as a foliar feed.