Renewing Cherry Trees

Categories: Fruit Growing

We have cherry trees set out diamond shape about 16 feet apart. We

cannot take out every other tree and have any order, so we ask you if it

would be possible to cut the trees back and keep them pruned down to a

smaller size. The trees are about 20 years old and are dying back quite

badly.



If the trees are dying for lack of summer moisture it is idle to do much

for them until you can give them irrigation r ght after the fruit

ripens. The cherry tree takes kindly to cutting back and will give good

new fruit-bearing shoots if the roots are in good condition. It is

desirable to remove surplus branches entirely rather than to cut back

everything to a definite height, the branches to be removed being those

which show disposition to die back and those which are running out too

far so as to reduce the space between the trees or to interfere with

branches from other trees. Branches which are failing above can in some

cases be cut back to a strong thrifty lateral branch below.

Shortening-in branches high up is less desirable because it forces out

too much new growth in the top of the tree and carries the fruit so high

that picking would be expensive. All cuts of any size should be painted

to prevent the wood from checking.