Yield the juiciest fruits come harvest time with this pruning guide
If the branches on your peach tree are sprawling in every direction, but despite all this dense growth, you don’t notice much actual fruit growing, it’s likely time to learn how to prune a peach tree.
While peach trees need a few years to get established before producing fruit, they can’t provide you with bountiful produce if there’s a strain on resources. That’s where pruning comes into play. While cutting away branches may seem counterintuitive to helping your trees grow, pruning is essential for stimulating growth and helping your peach tree thrive. Here’s how to prune a peach tree like a pro.
If you want your peach tree to have a plentiful harvest year after year, keeping up with pruning each spring should be at the top of your to-do list. Here’s how to prune a peach tree in six easy steps.
Just a note: Depending on the size of your peach tree, you may need to do some of this work on a ladder. Be 100% sure you’re comfortable trimming your peach tree while on a ladder, and follow all necessary safety precautions. Always work in good weather and have a buddy to hold the ladder.
No matter what trees or shrubs you are pruning, always clean your pruners and other tools before starting. Cleaning your tools is pruning 101. Pruning tools may come into contact with plant diseases and pests or plant sap, which you can then spread to other plants if you don’t clean them before and after each use.
Clean pruning tools with warm, soapy water.
Soak pruning tools in diluted bleach (Using a solution of 1 part bleach and 10 parts water should work here. Just be sure to use a separate bucket from the soapy water, as soap and bleach should never mix).
Wipe the tools dry with a microfiber cloth.
Remove any diseased branches, those that have split away from the tree, or those that have pest infestations, as these can cause damage to the tree. Cut away the affected branches at a sharp, 45-degree angle. Prune close to the base of the branch, about 1/4-inch from the bud. Be sure to clean and sterilize your pruning tools again after cutting away sick or dead branches and before pruning other branches.
Too many large branches will compete for resources to produce fruit, so make a note of which large branches you want to keep. The branches should form an overall open V-shape for the tree.
Choose about three to five primary branches to keep on the tree. These upward-growing branches will be the tree's “scaffolds.”
Stick to scaffolds that are 18–36 inches from the ground for easier harvesting.
Cut away any competing branches with your pruning tools, making sure to cut branches away at 45-degree angles.
Unless you want to invest in a large ladder to pick your peaches each summer, you’ll want to cut away branches that start on the tree at a height of more than 36 inches from the ground, and maintain main branches, or scaffolding branches, that start on the tree at about 15 to 36 inches from the ground. This way, you’ll be able to harvest some of the tree’s peaches with just a step stool or ladder.
Be sure to trim away branches that are not growing at a 45-degree angle as well, and watch out for falling branches as you trim away the excess. You may want to wear a hard hat and goggles to keep yourself safe when trimming the tops of branches.
Aside from the large tree branches that can support those juicy, heavy peaches, you’ll also notice some thin branches growing all over the tree. You can prune away these branches as well. Remove branches, aside from the primary scaffold branches, that are growing toward the tree or vertically.
Take that, suckers! Suckers are the small, competing branches you’ll see growing around the base of the tree trunk. You can either pop these off of the tree trunk with your hands or cut them away with your pruning tools.
After removing large competing branches and thin branches and trimming excess length on the remaining branches, you should have removed about 40% of the tree in an annual pruning session.
Like many plants, peach trees benefit from annual pruning sessions that can promote growth and fruit production, minimize disease or pest spread, and improve the overall health of the trees. With overcrowded, overgrown branches, some parts of the tree may have less access to light and nutrients, which can impact fruit production. Skipping this chore can leave you with smaller or fewer peaches and may lead to the premature death of the tree.
The best time to prune a peach tree is in the spring. Although many other plants benefit most from pruning when they are dormant, typically in the winter, you should prune peach trees in warmer weather. Pruning a peach tree in the winter makes the tree more susceptible to disease, so plan to prune it in mid to late spring.
The winter is the trickiest time of the year for most plants. If you’re growing a peach tree in a container, consider putting it outside during the winter but in a sheltered area and wrapped in a protective layer of bubble wrap to protect the roots.
You should also plan to prune peach trees during the late winter to stimulate new growth in the spring. Prune away fast-growing shoots and branches, and cut a section of older fruiting wood for best results.
Early spring is the best time to plant a new peach tree so it has plenty of time to establish itself before the colder months roll in. For well-established peach trees, start the spring by spraying them with a fungicide before it flowers. Continue this process every two weeks until harvest season.
Harvest season for peach trees is typically June through August, depending on your home’s location and climate. Other than maintaining a regular schedule of gathering ripe peaches from the tree and ground underneath it, you should look out for signs that the peach tree isn’t naturally thinning enough. If the tree doesn’t naturally thin out some of the peaches that don’t ripen correctly, you may need to step in by manually thinning the peaches so the remaining fruits are 6 to 8 inches apart on each branch.
Pruning is just one part of maintaining healthy, fruitful peach trees. If you want your peach trees to give you the best bang for your buck, there are some other tasks to add to your checklist to keep these trees thriving.
While peach trees are generally easy to care for, they are susceptible to some diseases and pests. In the fall, you’ll want to apply fixed copper to your peach trees to minimize the risk of shot-hole fungus. Then, in winter, you can also use fixed copper to prevent peach leaf curling. In the springtime, you will need to apply a fungicide, potentially multiple times during especially rainy seasons, to keep brown rot at bay.
For young peach trees, apply a 10-10-10 fertilizer or other complete fertilizer in March and in May, then again after harvest. You can also use a complete fertilizer or fertilizer high in nitrogen and potassium for mature peach trees older than three years.
Peach trees love light and need a lot of it. When choosing a spot to plant a new peach tree, ensure it’s an area with full sunlight. Pruning is key here, too. Pruning away excess branches helps the sunlight reach more of the plant to help it grow and fruit.
Young trees need moist soil as they are getting established. Water young peach trees with about 3 to 5 gallons of water per week, watering them every few days. More mature peach trees only need about 1 to 1.5 inches of water per seven to 10 days, which may be met through the rainfall in your area.
While pruning may seem fairly straightforward, if you do it incorrectly, it could spell the end for your tree. Plus, it comes with some safety risks, especially if you need to use a ladder. In general, hiring a local tree pruning pro to prune your peach tree is the best and safest option. If you have some gardening knowledge, you can consider this as a DIY project. If you do DIY, be sure to stay alert, especially when cutting any larger branches.
Pruning trees costs about $450 to $1,400 per tree, depending on the tree’s size. Pruning young trees under three years old will start at about $75 since they only need light pruning as they are getting established.
You can DIY, which will be less expensive if you already have tree service equipment like pruning shears and a ladder on hand. Otherwise, you’ll spend about $50 on pruners or $150 to $300 for a gas-pole pruner for taller, more mature trees, up to $150 for safety equipment, and $150 to $500 for a ladder.
If you ever want to see the literal fruits of your labor, you’ll need to prune your peach trees. Without pruning, the trees may not grow or bear fruit since the nutrients will be divided among too many offshoots to provide any with enough energy to produce the peaches. Plus, if parts of the peach tree become diseased or pest-ridden, pruning can nip those problems in the bud.
Peach trees don’t tend to live as long as other types of trees and crops. They tend to last only about 12 years, and you shouldn’t expect to see a full peach harvest each of those years, either. Young peach trees need a few years to get established before they produce fruit, but you should have plenty of peaches for your pies and cobblers during their mature years, around years four through eight.
Peach trees grow to be about 25 feet, so keep this in mind for pruning as well. If you plan to DIY, you’ll need to be comfortable working on a ladder. Without pruning, peach tree branches can sprawl nearly as wide as the tree grows tall, so make sure to plan pruning sessions at least once per year in the spring for controlled growth. And if you’re working on a ladder, be sure to follow all safety precautions, especially if you’ll be dealing with falling branches.
With some trees, like apple, sweet cherry, or pear trees, you’ll want at least a couple of trees on your property for the plants to produce fruit. But peach trees are one type of fruit tree that is self-pollinating, meaning you can plant just one tree and still reap the sweet rewards.
