Method for Pruning Crabapple
Article Summary: Common knowledge about crabapple cultivation, pruning methods for crabapple, let's take a look together!
Crabapple pruning generally has two stages: spring pruning and post-blooming pruning. The purposes of these two stages are different. Spring pruning focuses on shortening and thinning branches, while post-blooming pruning is to maintain the tree shape and make the overall effect beautiful.
Spring Pruning: It is best to prune when the tree has not yet started to bud in early spring, with methods mainly involving shortening and thinning branches.
1. Recently planted plants: Following the principle of keeping the good and removing the bad, generally select 3 to 5 strong branches, cut off the excessive weak, diseased, and bent branches from the base to promote robust new branches from the root next year, increasing the number of branches within the cluster. When cutting, be careful not to leave a stub. For the selected strong branches, usually prune lightly for strong branches and heavily for weak branches, leaving an outward-facing bud at the cut to expand the cluster range and make the center hollow for better ventilation and light, and to form more flower buds. In places with good fertilization and water conditions, prune lightly and keep longer; in places with poor conditions, prune heavily and keep shorter.
2. Plants after planting:
The ideal shrub shape should maintain an inner high and outer low, inner sparse and outer dense state, which not only allows the branches to evenly receive sunlight but also increases the shrub's permeability, which is more conducive to the healthy growth of the plant. Specific pruning methods are as follows:
(1) Cut off the diseased, crossing, dense, overlapping, and inward branches from the base. Select 5 to 8 branches with suitable direction and thickness to keep, and the pruning height should be consistent at the base.
(2) Since crabapple has the most flowers on branches aged 3 to 5 years, it is necessary to update the flowering branches every year to keep the plant in full bloom. The updating of flowering branches should be carried out annually, usually replacing 2 to 3 branches each year. Excessive new branches and old flowering branches can be removed.
(3) Since the flower buds of crabapple are basically borne on short branches, leave a few nodes before cutting to increase the number of short branches.
Post-Blooming Pruning
To maintain the tree shape and make the overall effect beautiful, it is necessary to do some pruning after flowering. Two weeks after flowering, remove crowded branches and branches that protrude from the outline of the tree canopy. Shorten long branches, leaving 3 to 4 buds from the base, and cut the rest short to increase the formation of short flowering branches. The fruits after flowering should be removed as soon as possible to prevent nutrient loss and affect the formation of flower buds the following year.
Precautions
1. When shortening flowering branches to control plant height, do it lightly and gradually every year to avoid heavy shortening that could affect the number of spring flowers.
2. The number of branches to keep should depend on the available space. When planting individually, more branches can be kept; when planting in rows or groups with limited space, fewer branches can be kept.
3. Post-blooming pruning reduces the leafy branches and reduces the photosynthetic area, which can inhibit plant growth, so pruning should be light. (The author's unit is the Horticulture Management Bureau of Hengshui City, Hebei Province)
The detailed explanation of the crabapple pruning method provided above is for reference and suggestion only!