The March sun awakens in us the desire to go out into the garden and make up for winter inactivity. Scissors are usually the first thing we have at hand, so we set out to tidy up the fruit trees. But be careful who you approach. Some species might not even recover from such a cut.
While for apple and pear trees, pre-spring pruning is a common intervention to give them strength for the new season, there is also a group of trees for which a March intervention could, without exaggeration, be a death sentence. Stone fruits, which include plums, cherries, apricots or peaches, have their “off season” in March. If we decided to cut them radically at this time, it would not only be a loss of this year’s harvest, but directly the very existence of the entire tree.
In the YouTube video, Jan Urbánek – the grower, describes other principles of stone fruit cutting:
Molds are dangerous killers
The main enemy that lies in wait for every fresh cut of stone fruit in early spring is a fungal disease known as silver leaf spot or, if you prefer to speak professionally, Chondrostereum purpureum. This disease is spread by spores precisely in the cold and wet weather that is so typical for March. Pathogenic germs easily penetrate fresh wounds, which heal only very slowly in the cold, thus giving the fungus enough time for its unwelcome mission.
Silvery leaves
As soon as the problem settles in the vascular system of the tree, it starts to release poisonous substances that cause that silvering. Why does it occur? It is a consequence of the separation of the upper layer of the leaves, which then acquire a characteristic silvery sheen due to the wine. Soon after, the branches begin to die and the tree gradually withers. In addition, in March, the air humidity is high and at the same time the defense capacity of stoneflies is low, which unfortunately creates ideal conditions for this deadly disease.
Klejotok unnecessarily burdens the trees
Another serious risk of the March cut is the so-called glue flow. Stones, unlike cores, are much more sensitive to bark damage at a time when sap begins to flow through the tree, but temperatures are still hovering around freezing. Pruning too early causes stress in the tree, during which a sticky to amber-colored substance oozes from the wounds, which we have all seen in the garden. This is not just an aesthetic flaw; the tree loses precious energy and nutrients that it needs for the sprouting of new leaves and the formation of flowers in the spring. In addition, the wounds also become a gateway for bacterial canker, which can completely destroy even a mature tree in a single season.
Forget the scissors
Therefore, experts strongly recommend to postpone the scissors for stone trees until the time when the tree is in full vegetation, or even after harvesting. The ideal time to cut plums and cherries is late specifically from June to August. At this time, the tree has the greatest strength and can “heal” wounds after a cut very quickly with its own healing substances. In addition, higher temperatures and drier air significantly reduce the risk of fungal spores spreading. If we also prune these trees in the summer, we will also support the formation of flower buds for next year and we will ensure the better the harvest.
There is an exception after all
There is only one exception, when scissoring is permissible for drupes in March. This is the planting of young trees, which in some cases require a so-called post-planting cut. This is a process that will help to balance the ratio between the reduced root system and the aerial part. Even in this case, however, we must immediately treat the wounds with a high-quality splitting wax or tree balm in order to reduce the risk of infection to the lowest possible level. Let the plums and apricots wake up from hibernation in peace and give them time to bloom without unnecessary stress from open wounds. You will be rewarded with a bountiful harvest and the knowledge that your trees will not have to fight for their lives with the invisible killers that the March weather so likes to summon.
