I just planted a sour cherry tree. Do I need to prune it this year?
The beauty of growing sour cherry trees is that they need little in the way of pruning. This may come as a relief – and a bit of a surprise - if you’ve ever grown any other types of fruiting trees, including sweet cherries, which can sometimes take a doctorate (or at the very least an experienced orchardist) to figure out how to get the job done right.
In your sour cherry tree’s first year, you really just need to concentrate on the basic pruning techniques that are applicable to any tree you drag home from the garden centre.
First, you’ll need to check you tree for any damaged, broken, or diseased branches and prune them flush with the main trunk, being careful to leave the branch collar intact.
Next you’ll need to inspect your tree for any weak, crossing or parallel branches and remove those. These branches are unnecessary and as your tree gets older, they’ll impede airflow, increasing the chances of insect and disease problems.
Ultimately you’re going to want your main branches to be spaced every 4 to 6 inches along the trunk of the tree, so keep that in mind when you’re making your cuts.
It’s also a good idea to remove any branches within eighteen inches of the ground.
All this assumes that your sour cherry has a respectable collection of branches when you first plant it. If it has no branches, or only weak or spindly branches, then you’ll want to head back the main stalk (prune it just above a healthy bud) at about the 2-foot level in order to force the plant to put its energy into strengthening its side shoots.
If you have any questions or comments, please send them to me at vanessa@gardenmuse.ca.
Posted: March 18, 2011
