Training and Pruning

TRAINING AND PRUNING

 Training is a practice in which tree growth is directed
into a desired shape and form.
 Training young fruit trees is essential for proper tree
development. It is better to direct tree growth with
training than to correct it with pruning.
 Training includes summer training and summer
pruning as well as dormant pruning.
 The goal of tree training is to direct tree growth and
minimize cutting.
Training
 Pruning is the proper and judicious removal of
plant parts such as shoots, spurs, leaves, roots or
nipping away of terminal parts etc. to correct or
maintain tree structure and increase its usefulness.
 It is done to
–make the plant more productive and bear quality fruits,
–increase longevity of the tree,
–make it into manageable shape and
–to get maximum returns from the orchard.
 Pruning is a dwarfing process and can be used to
maintain any desired tree size.
 Removal of a branch removes not only stored
carbohydrates but reduces the potential leaf surface as
well.
Pruning
 Pruning increases fruit size, nitrogen per growing point and stimulates
growth near the cut.
 Excessive pruning reduces fruitfulness especially with young vigorous
trees that may already be developing too much vegetative growth.
 Large cuts results in excessive stimulation of sprouts near the cut, while
well distributed small cuts spreads the stimulus better over the entire
tree.
 The severity, kind and amount of pruning to be done on a tree depend
on the
- age,
-existing framework,
–condition of bark and wood,
–Growth characteristics
–Fruiting habit of the variety
–Whether tree is permanent or filler
 Pruning is most often done during the winter, commonly
TRAINING PRUNING
 Mainly concerned with giving a  Pruning is the removal of a
form or shape to the plant. portion of a tree to correct or
 Determines the general character maintain tree structure.
and even details of the plant’s  It has an effect on the function
outline and of its branching and of the plant.
framework.  It is meant to assist more in
 Training includes summer determining what the tree does
training and summer pruning as in respect of fruiting.
well as dormant pruning.  Pruning is most often done
 The goal of tree training is to during the winter, commonly
direct tree growth and minimize referred to as dormant pruning.
cutting Also done during summers,
referred to as summer pruning.
Training and Pruning
 Objectives of Training
 To admit more sunlight and air to the centre of
the tree and to expose maximum leaf surface to
the sunlight.
 To direct the growth of the tree so that various
cultural operations, such as spraying and
harvesting are performed at the lowest cost.
 To protect the tree from sunburn and wind
damage.
 To secure a balanced distribution of fruit-bearing
parts on the main limbs of the plant
 Principle of Training
 The principle object in training a
young tree is to develop strong
framework of scaffold branches.
 –All methods of training must stand
or fall by their ability to achieve a
tree capable of bearing high yielding
fruits without undue breakage.
Trunk: Main stem of the plant.
 Head: Point on the trunk from which first branch arise
 Scaffold branches: Main branches arising from the head are
known as scaffold branches.
–Low headed tree: Trees in which scaffold branches arise within
0.7-0.9 m height from ground level. Low headed trees come into
bearing comparatively much earlier, are able to resist stormy
winds more effectively and their spraying and harvesting expenses
are less.
–High headed tree: Trees in which scaffold branches come out
from the trunk above 1.2 m. In the tropical climate, high headed
trees are unsuitable as their exposed trunks are subjected to
sunscald in summer
 Crotch: The angle made by scaffold limb to
the trunk or the secondary branch to
scaffold limb is called crotch. The crotch
should be broad and not narrow.
 Leader: The main growing branch from
ground level up to the tip dominating all
other branches.
 Spur: Numerous shoot growth which are
abundant over the fruit trees and upon
which most of the fruit is borne.
Crotch, Leader and spur
 Water shoots: These are
extraordinary vigorous vegetative
shoots which grow from the high
points on the main branches in
upright direction at the expense of
main branches.
 Suckers: arise from adventitious
buds on the roots or underground
parts of the stem of the tree.
 Objectives of Pruning
 To control the size of the plant.
 To control the form ( structural make up of the plant) which
involves number, placement, relative size and angle of
branches.
 Better quality fruits by better light distribution.
 To remove diseased, criss-crossed, dried and broken
branches.
 To remove the non-productive parts in order to divert the
energy into those parts that are capable of bearing fruits.
 Proper proportion of root-shoot ratio.
 To regulate the fruit crop.
 Longevity of the tree.
 Chances of insects-pests, diseases and winter injury are less.
 Principle of Pruning
 To admit more sunlight, remove
unproductive branches which
are producing few or no fruits
and also to keep the plant in its
proper vigour, vitality and to
obtain optimum yields of good
quality fruits.
 Types of Pruning
 Thinning out
 Heading Back
 Bulk Pruning
 Thin wood Pruning
 Thinning out:
When a shoot is entirely
removed from the point of its
origin and no re-growth is
allowed to occur from the cut
ends.
–do not invigorate the tree
 Heading back:
When the terminal portion of
branch/shoot is removed and it
encourages lateral growth from the
remaining shoot.
–In other words, if a portion of a
shoot is removed and the growth can
develop from the remaining portion.
-Heading back promotes the growth of
lower buds as well as several terminal
buds below the cut.
–When lateral branches are headed into
one year old wood, the area near the cut
is invigorated.
–The headed branch is much stronger
and rigid, resulting in lateral secondary
branching
Thin wood pruning:
refers to the removal of slow
growing, weak, under
hanging branches or shoots
which are either not fruiting
or producing fruits of low
quality
Bench Cut -removes vigorous, upright
shoots back to side branches that are
relatively flat and outward growing.
–used to open up the center of the
tree and spread the branches
outward.
–This is a major cut and should only
be used when necessary.
Season of Pruning
 Dormant Pruning
 Summer Pruning
 Dormant pruning
 Most often done during the winter-
commonly referred to as
 dormant pruning.
 Dormant pruning is an invigorating process.
 Heavy dormant pruning also promotes
excessive vegetative vigor,
 Timing of dormant pruning is critical.
Pruning should begin as late in the winter
as possible to avoid winter injury
 Why Dormant Pruning ?
 Visible Branching Patterns( branches can be seen easily at this
time).
 Other orchard operations are less pressing
 Less danger of pulling bark away from around pruning wounds
 Pruning goes well with cool weather.
 Increased growth response
 Has less dwarfing effect on the trees than summer pruning.
 Improved Equipment Access
 Fungus diseases are dormant too, so there’s less danger of
transmission
 Tree is just about to start the active growth that promotes
wound-healing
 Summer Pruning
 Done during summers-referred to as summer pruning.
 Its severity is much less, less common, more specific
and selective.
 Eliminates an energy or food producing portion of the
tree and results in reduced tree growth.
 For most purposes, summer pruning should be limited
to removing the upright and vigorous current season's
growth; only thinning cuts should be used.
 To minimize the potential for winter injury, summer
pruning should not be done after the end of
 Advantages of Summer Pruning
 Better illumination of leaves and fruits
 Improved assimilation in centre of trees
 Better fruit colour, fruit quality and storage.
 Slower total growth of trees
 Less wood production
 Less total pruning effort and improved work
efficiency
 Possibility of reducing crown volume of tree,
better utilization of space, more tree per acre
 Less danger of winter injury
Training Systems
 Central Leader
 Open-Centre
 Modified Leader
 Central Leader System
 Main trunk extends from the soil surface to the total height of
the tree
 Several side branches grow at different heights in various
directions.
 Advantages:
 –Such trees arestructurally best suited to bear crop load and to
resist the damage from strong winds.
 Disadvantages:
–Trees under this system grow too tall and are less spreading.
–Tree management (spraying, pruning, thinning and harvesting)
is difficult.
–Shading effect on interior canopy (the lower branches of such
trees may be so much in shade that the fruit may not be able to
develop proper colour).
 Open Centre System
 •Main trunk is allowed to grow upto1.0 m by cutting within a year of
planting.
 •3-5 lateral branches are allowed to develop from short main stem.
 •Widely used fro peaches and is good for mechanical harvesting.
 Advantages:
–The trees so trained allowmaximum sunshine to reach their branches.
–Better clourationof fruits on the interior side of the tree.
–Trees are more fruitful and low spreading tree greatly facilitate operations
like spraying, pruning, thinning and harvesting.
 Disadvantages:
–Such trees are structurally weak, and their limbs are more likely to break
with crop load and strong winds.
–This system does not only need severe pruning to start with but also
constant effort to maintain its form through drastic pruning treatment.
‘
 Modified Leader System
 This training system is most acceptable for commercial fruit cultivation.
 This system combines the best qualities of the central leader and open
centre systems.
 A leader develops on the young tree until it reaches the height of 2-3 m
and then the growth is restricted.
 Laterals are selected to ascent in a spiral fashion up the central trunk and
are cut until the proper number and distribution of branches have been
obtained.
 Advantages:
–The branches are well distributed, allowing plenty of sunshine to reach the
interior of the tree.
–The trees is structurally strong and not prone to limb breakage.
–Owing to limited height of trees, spraying, pruning and harvesting may be
done easily.
 Some fruit trees bear on current season’s shoots while others
do so on the past season’s growth.
 Bearing may also be on spurs and/or shoots.
 Mango, grape and most temperate fruits have flower buds
formed much earlier to appearance of their flowers, but citrus
fruits have flower buds differentiated just a little before
flowering.
 Some fruits have simple flower buds while others have mixed
buds—which upon unfolding give flowers as well as leaves.
 The pruning practice should be synchronized with the flowering
habit of the species and sometimes even the variety.
 Evidently, one should be aware of the characteristics of the
plant material in hand otherwise there are chances of rendering
the trees less productive and sometimes out right barren
through indiscriminate pruning.
 Systems of Training Dwarf Trees
1.Spindle Bush: modification of the dwarf pyramid or as
intermediate between a vertical cordon and a bush form.
 •Differs from the dwarf pyramid in that it has no specific
arrangement of scaffold branches and from the vertical cordon
in that the fruit is borne on short branches rather than directly
on the main stem or trunk.
 •Most important feature of this system is the tying down of
lateral shoots in a horizontal position with little or no summer
pruning.
 •Trained with or without support posts with a central leader
straight and with many small fruiting branches.
 •These branches are bent out and down by spreaders to
develop wide crotches and to induce early fruiting.
 •Tree spread is controlled by cutting back the shoots to ½ to ¾
 Systems of Training Dwarf Trees
2. Dwarf Pyramids: consists of a tree with a
central stem about 2.5 m tall from which
short branches radiate in successive tiers so
that a pyramidal shape is build up.
 Fruiting spurs are developed on the short
branches.
 Summer pruning forms an essential part of
success with dwarf pyramids.
 Systems of Training Dwarf Trees
3. Cordons: are single stemmed trees.
 This form is seldom found in commercial fruit
production and has been replaced by dwarf
pyramids.
 Cordons are vertical, oblique or horizontal
 Vertical cordons: trees are trained erect and
grown to a height of 10-12 feet with the first
fruiting wood developed at about 30 cm. from
the ground
 Oblique cordons: are trained at the 450
angle
4. Palmettes:refers to the shape of a palm leaf, an
open fan or an open hand with spread fingers.
 Formed by developing lateral scaffold branches
from the trunk beginning at 30 cm from the
surface of the ground.
 These laterals are in pairs and are equally
balanced in opposite directions. Other scaffolds
are in turn vigorously developed but are kept
about 30 cm apart.
 Four groups: Horizontal, Oblique, Candelabra,
Fan Palmette
5. Espaliers:
similar to kniffin system of
training grapes.
-The trellis is 5 feet high with
either 2 wires at 3 feet and 5
feet OR 4 wires at 2,3,4,and 5
feet.
 6. Hedgerow Plantation:
 Adapted to mechanical cultivation.
 Distance within the rows -close and between the rows -wide to
accommodate machinery and management.
 Adapted to compact trees, staked free standing on trellised
growing north to south.
 Trees planted fairly close 4 feet in rows, 12 feet apart and
grown as small bushy trees that develop into a continuous or
hedgerow habit.
 Hedgerow plantation can also be developed without support
using semi dwarf or semi-standard rootstocks with trees 10-15
feet apart in rows 20-30 feet apart.
 Trees are kept 10 feet in height.
 7. Meadow or Bed Orchards:
 In this system, trees are planted at ultra high densities of
30,000 to 100,000 tree per hectare.
 Trees spaced 30 x 45 cm apart with sprinkler head through
which hormones, fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and water
may be applied.
 Cropping is taken every other year upto 20 t/acre but cropping
every year may be possible by judicious pruning and
management.
 It offers complete mechanization of both pruning and harvesting
coupled with chemical control of weeds.
 Limitations:-High cost of establishment
 -Orchard become uneconomical before standard orchards.
 -Annual production is sacrificed because of removal of fruiting
buds in alternate years
8 Tatura Trellis system in Peaches:
 One of the highest yielding systems.
 System appears to be V shaped.
 Trees are planted about 6 x 1 m apart
( 1668 trees/ha).
 Bearing starts in the second year.
 Main framework consists of Y shaped
leaders which are tied with the wires
Thank You