Most of our efforts in the orchard continue to concentrate on pruning the apple trees. We are now about two-thirds finished. It takes time to make an assessment of each tree and then prune accordingly.
In pruning it is likely that one of two types of cuts are made. Cutting shoots and young branches with diameters of less than an inch is one type of cut. This is a “thinning out” cut. The second type is used to cut more substantial size wood. It is a “heading back” cut. Cuts on most small diameter wood can be made with hand clippers, limb loppers or a small hand saw. Larger wood will need to be cut with a saw of some sort.
If you look closely where a branch grows out of the trunk, you will notice an area at the base of the branch that is somewhat thicker than the branch itself. This area is the collar. A basic point to remember in all pruning is that any cut should be as close to the collar as possible without cutting into it. The collar contains a natural chemical barrier that stops decay and has cells that will grow scar tissue to heal the area where the branch is removed. The scar tissue will heal more easily when it has a clean smooth surface to grow over. This is the reason it is important to make clean, flush pruning cuts. It is not good to leave stubs. Good, clean, smooth cuts are easily made with good, sharp tools. A person never goes wrong by spending a little more to acquire good pruning tools. Look at it as an investment not only for care of fruit trees but other areas of landscaping as well.