Pruning old fruit trees

Mum recently had her 40 year old Nectarine tree cut back to the stump.  My Nana grew this particular tree from a seed and contrary to popular opinion it grew into a great tree with an abundance of fruit.  But, recent storms had decimated it and there were broken branches hanging everywhere.


My mother likes everything neat in her garden so decided to have it cut back severely, as you can see.


















 I like to seal the ends of large trees after pruning, by applying tree pruning paint.   A tip I learnt from my father.

He explained to a very young gardener that in harsh dry weather conditions using a pruning sealer will help the tree retain more moisture which helps recovery.  This is particular relevant for older trees like Mum's Nectarine.

Dad use to use bits of left over paint, but times change and now we have special pruning paint which can be found at your local garden supplier.

Happy gardening


Bronwyn