Pruning late plum

[pumkinlover]

One of my plums is really late season. Its got rather overgrown because it fruits so late that it is too late to prune after fruiting.
I have just pruned it and had to take off the crop before ripe but it has been stewed so not wasted.
I wonder whether to prune early summer next year and hope that enough plums will remain on the tree to make a crop.?

[pumkinlover]

[Bill Door]

Have a look at the RHS site about pruning plums, this best tells you what to do.  You might be lucky and avoid silver leaf this year.

Good luck

Bill

[pumkinlover]

Thanks, much earlier than I have done. Next year then. Hope it keeps healthy.

[Vinlander]

This is a bit of a risk, but nurseries in Germany routinely get their plum scions in spring by breaking the branches off, not cutting them.

I have tried this idea many times when pruning grapes very late and it avoids more than 90% of the bleeding. I have also used it occasionally to prune late plums when I need to, and I have had no problems with breaking branches up to 20mm in diameter - but then silverleaf is russian roulette at the best of times...

Basically the theory is that a paper cut is ragged and hurts like hell but clots over quickly, but the smooth edges of a razor cut just bleed and bleed.

Backing this up is the fact that foresters now deliberately bruise trees around any big cuts because it 'wakes up' the response to injury whereas a clean cut can get ignored.

Hope this helps.

Cheers