Fruit trees need to be cut regularly to stay productive – but getting it wrong it can do more harm than good. Find out how to prune them properly.
15.11.2024
The extent to which you prune your fruit tree hugely influences its subsequent growth: the more you cut back your tree in winter, the more it will bud in the summer – and less pruning means less growth. The method you use is just as important.
When you come to prune your fruit trees, you need to consider the tree itself and what you want to achieve. Do you want to trim a young tree into shape, tidy up a mature tree and keep the beautiful blossom, or rejuvenate an older tree? Different outcomes call for different techniques.
When pruning fruit trees, you should use a sharp cutting tool so branches are not crushed or torn.
The STIHL PG 20 bypass secateurs are suitable for smaller pruning jobs. For larger pruning tasks, it is better to use STIHL PB 10 bypass pruning shears or a STIHL GTA 26 battery-powered garden pruner, which can make pruning fruit trees easier.
You should prune fruit trees once a year. Choose the right pruning time for the type of fruit.
The following rule of thumb applies here: pome fruit trees in winter or spring, stone fruit trees in summer.
Pruning your fruit trees is important to keep them healthy and to enable a heavy crop.
This is because annual pruning prevents pests, stimulates growth and ensures an optimally exposed crown – which ultimately improves the quality of the fruit.
To prune a fruit tree correctly, thin the crown and remove all water shoots – that is, thin, upward-growing stems.
Pay attention to the sap level here, which means you should always cut the main stems to the same height. You can prune young trees vigorously, while older ones need more restraint.
The ideal time for pruning fruit trees depends on the type of tree. Pome fruit trees are best pruned between November and April, outside the growing season; stone fruit trees in summer.
A garden calendar can help you keep track of all your tree pruning tasks.
Find out more about the right time for pruning fruit trees here.
The pruning calendar is intended to give you an initial overview of when best to prune your fruit trees, which pruning time works as a second option and when fruit trees can be additionally pruned as required.
Download pruning calendar
We have compiled the important months for fruit tree pruning in a PDF table so that you can easily keep track of them.
If you have a fruit tree of your own, of course you want a bountiful harvest. A regular pruning schedule makes all the difference to the health of the tree and how much fruit it yields, and cutting back every year encourages new growth and maintains the vitality of your fruit tree. Proper fruit tree care will support a healthier plant and high-quality fruit. When you prune you also open the crown of the tree, which helps to ensure sufficient airflow and thereby prevent fungal diseases and pests.
The best time to prune varies depending on the type of fruit tree and how much growth you want. Apple and pear trees will benefit from a prune between November and April – though for the first few years you shouldn’t touch young fruit trees before spring arrives, as the wood is still very vulnerable to heavy frost.
If you want to encourage growth, you will typically prune these fruit trees during the colder months. This is when the tree moves into a dormant phase and draws nutrients back into the roots, ready to release when the growing season starts again. Late winter, before the tree starts to bud, may be an ideal time to prune pear and apple trees because the cuts you make will heal more quickly as the spring growth surge arrives, and so your fruit trees are less likely to become infected.
It’s also possible to prune in Spring, but doing so will encourage less vigorous growth; this makes it a good choice if you have fruit trees that are already the right size for your space, as well as for formally trained fruit trees such as fan-trained cherries and espalier apples.
Choose the right time. Most fruit trees are best pruned in late winter.
Legal regulations: when is it permitted to prune fruit trees? The law stipulates that no major work should be carried out on trees during the nesting period between 1 March and 30 September.
How old is the tree? Younger trees still need to be brought into shape. Older trees, on the other hand, need to be thinned, but not cut back as much.
The right tool. Sharp pruning shears or a garden pruner are the best tools for pruning a fruit tree.
The right technique. Always cut with the sap height in mind: this means that the main stems must always be cut to the same height. Water shoots and vertical growth must be removed.
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Always wear your personal protective equipment when working with STIHL power tools. Find out more in the instruction manual for your product. Before using your power tool for the first time, fully familiarise yourself with it and ensure that it is in flawless condition before each use.
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Which pruning method you choose depends primarily on the age of your tree – we have summarised the most important information for you below.
As soon as you plant a tree, you can start creating ideal growth conditions for your fruit tree. Initial pruning is carried out directly when planting the trees, by trimming in the root and crown area to stimulate growth.
In addition to the centre stem, select three to four main stems to be leaders when cutting fruit trees. These should ideally grow out of the trunk at a 45-degree angle. All other branches can be removed, as these framework branches are sufficient to develop a crown.
Development pruning is carried out until the tree has reached the desired crown height – this takes about 5 to 6 years on average, and may be quicker for fast-growing trees. To achieve good branching, cut back the leaders and the centre stem by one third.
In the long term, you want to the crown to be a pyramid shape with a balanced sap height. The more mature the tree, the less intensive the development pruning needs to be.
Maintenance pruning refers to all interventions on plants that are fully grown and regularly bear fruit. Thinning the crown is the focus when pruning these fruit trees.
When pruning an established fruit tree, remove any densely growing stems as well as water shoots and vertical growth. The same applies to shoots growing vigorously downwards.
A prematurely ageing tree can be recognised by its smaller fruits and a crown that is too dense. An older fruit tree can be encouraged to grow again with careful pruning.
That means thinning the crown and removing any branches that are threatening to break. In order to avoid water shoots, the fruit tree can be cut back gradually over two consecutive years.
Pruning pome and stone fruit trees correctly is, most of all, a matter of timing. Here you will find the most important information and tips.
Apple, pear and other pome fruit trees are usually pruned between November and April, outside the growing period.
In their first few years, young pome fruit trees should be pruned between the end of February and the beginning of March, as the young wood is still very susceptible to severe frost.
Cherry, peach and other vigorous stone fruit trees are best pruned at warmer times of year. This keeps the tree at an appropriate size, as the pruning process depletes its reserves and slows down growth.
As you can also cut stone fruit trees during the harvest period, it is possible to remove the fruit at the same time as the branches. You can certainly prune peach trees right up to the flowering season between April and May. However, it is best to prune cherry trees between June and mid-August – i.e. after harvesting.
Good to know
Legal information on fruit tree pruning: heavy pruning is prohibited by the Nature Conservation Act during the nesting period from 1 March to 30 September. Apart from minor maintenance pruning, fruit trees must not be pruned during this time. If there are birds breeding in the tree, you must not cut your fruit tree at all.
There are a few key things to remember when you prune your fruit trees:
