Winter cutting technology of low-yielding prosperous apple trees
July 18 12:12:29, 2025
Pruning fruit trees, especially apple trees that are either low-yielding or overly vigorous, requires careful techniques such as light pruning, localized control, and gradual relaxation. Light shearing is commonly used to manage the main branches, dense growth, and strong upright shoots. By gently extending these branches over 1–2 years, most trees can begin to bear fruit. Once the tree’s growth stabilizes, weaker branches can be moderately pruned to gradually develop into large, medium, and small fruiting branches. However, when cutting back weak branches, it's crucial not to remove too much at once, as this could cause the tree to become overly vigorous again, which may negatively affect fruit production.
For sparse-layered trees with small crowns, partial control pruning is recommended. This involves making moderate cuts on the outer and side branches to encourage branching and increase the number of branches along the perimeter. This helps to control the canopy’s density and balance the growth potential of the branches behind the main framework. At the same time, internal branches, dense shoots, and strong vertical growth should be selectively removed. Techniques like litchi (a type of branch bending), girdling, or twisting can be applied to certain auxiliary branches to reduce their vigor and promote flowering.
Gradual relaxation pruning is a key method for young apple trees, helping to boost flower production. It involves light pruning across the entire tree to delay the growth of individual branches while maintaining overall tree growth. When the tree’s overall growth potential becomes more balanced, localized control measures are introduced to bring the growth of overly vigorous areas closer to the average level, which supports better flowering and fruiting.
By implementing these pruning strategies, the number of peripheral branches can be appropriately reduced, and some inner branches can be cut back or removed to maintain good light penetration and ensure high-quality fruit production. For low-yielding Red Fuji apple trees in winter, special attention should be given to controlling excessive vigor. Light shearing and sparse pruning are preferred, avoiding heavy cuts on lateral branches to increase their number and improve flower formation. If the tree is particularly vigorous, a light whole-tree pruning in winter can be followed by timely summer pruning based on the tree’s growth to stabilize its vigor and promote consistent fruiting.