I'm hoping anyone with knowledge of plum trees can possibly help with this. I got some bad information and pruned several branches off my plum tree today. I then found out you are supposed to wait until June to prune it. Yes, I'm an idiot for not checking into this ahead of time. Is there anything I can do to minimize the damage? Maybe apply some type of sealant to the cuts? also, this tree was in my backyard when I moved in 7 yrs ago and it never has produced plums bigger than golf balls. Will pruning increase the size of the fruit? Or is this due to the type of plum tree I have?
Thanks!
The reason we prune plums in the summer months is that they are less likely to pick up either of the two main fungal problems that can afflict them then.
In full sap flow they will weep when cut and this helps keep out any Silver Leaf or Bacterial Canker spores that are around. Also in the summer....it being warmer and dryer...the diseases are less likely to be sporolating.
If the cuts you have made are small..then you should be ok. If they are larger then I would suggest that you get some canker paint and recut a further small amount off and then paint straight away.
Any delay between pruning and painting can resuilt in you sealing the fungal spores under the paint.
As to the fruit size....pruning and letting good light into the tree can increase fruit size. but as you suggest it will depend on the variety. Some plums are by nature small.
Thinning heavy crops out at an early stage will greatly help fruit size and also go a long way to stopping the tree being bi-annual.....as well as preventing branch breaks from over loading.
In full sap flow they will weep when cut and this helps keep out any Silver Leaf or Bacterial Canker spores that are around. Also in the summer....it being warmer and dryer...the diseases are less likely to be sporolating.
If the cuts you have made are small..then you should be ok. If they are larger then I would suggest that you get some canker paint and recut a further small amount off and then paint straight away.
Any delay between pruning and painting can resuilt in you sealing the fungal spores under the paint.
As to the fruit size....pruning and letting good light into the tree can increase fruit size. but as you suggest it will depend on the variety. Some plums are by nature small.
Thinning heavy crops out at an early stage will greatly help fruit size and also go a long way to stopping the tree being bi-annual.....as well as preventing branch breaks from over loading.
There are many plum trees in the Bay Area whose natural fruit size is just slightly larger than that of a cherry. For a few years, I had several friends whose yards contained these trees, and regularly picked 5-gallon buckets of these plums for chutney, plum sauce, etc.
The plums taste just fine, but eating them out of hand is pretty frustrating: the pit seems to be about half of the fruit.
Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9
The plums taste just fine, but eating them out of hand is pretty frustrating: the pit seems to be about half of the fruit.
Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9
-
The Helpful Gardener
- Mod
- Posts: 7491
- Joined: Mon Feb 09, 2004 9:17 pm
- Location: Colchester, CT
While Jonas' tips on timing are good, I defer to Dr. Alex Shigo's work that points out that painted wounds actually tend to harbor MORE disease and fungus rather than less...
The one exception I have seen was something my bonsai teacher once showed me; he often used nail polish on wounds, a clear coat. They often include antifungals (for nail fungus) and seal tighter to the wood than does the old black goop arborists USED to use.
At this point I think you live with it and see what transpires...
HG
The one exception I have seen was something my bonsai teacher once showed me; he often used nail polish on wounds, a clear coat. They often include antifungals (for nail fungus) and seal tighter to the wood than does the old black goop arborists USED to use.
At this point I think you live with it and see what transpires...
HG
Last edited by The Helpful Gardener on Sun Jan 16, 2011 8:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.