Pruning Apricot

Terry starts with ...
Hi, I have an Apricot tree that is about 6 years old and has that many branches that it resembles an Echidna.
How do I prune it ? and how hard/often ? It has only produced about 10 fruit in the 6 yrs !

Thanks
Terry

Steve says...
Terry, an annual prune in late autumn is probably best - winter pruning can result in more disease problems. Decide on the shape you want and decide which main branches you want as the framework for the tree (so it looks good). Allow for plenty of light penetration and air circulation. The fruit are set on all the little twiggy bits (spurs, sprigs and twigs) so don't prune them off unless there are too many. Most apricots also fruit on fresh growth from the previous year. Thin fruit thin in spring at approx 1.5 cm size so that fruit aren't touching each other. You might have to remove 80% or more of the fruit. Pictures of a vase pruned trio (3 varieties in the same hole) and some nice ripening well-thinned Divinity fruit are included.

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1	Picture: 2

Jo says...
It's the end of August, I have a lot of new growth on my Apricot tree.
How muon the inside to I cut off and how much of the outer new growth do I cut off. I know i'm a bit late in prunning. Will it harm the tree. I'm in Tasmania.

John says...
Prune all those wispy branches back by 1/3 when the leaves go yellow in autumn.

Bronte says...

I believe it is appropriate to spray copper oxychloride at leaf fall also.

I used to prune apricots in winter and got some nasty fungal infections that nearly wiped out the trees. I now clip and nip after the fruit is finished in summer - I'm told because of the good sap flow, the tree can heal more easily. Never-the-less I still get conflicting advice. I love apricot trees but their maintenance is worrying, to say the least.

JohnT says...
Rick, It's called gummosis,and can be treated by a single application of 0.025 per cent benomyl to apricot trees immediately after pruning.

Merilyn says...
My husband wants me to grow an apricot tree, as apricots were planted along the Great Wall of China and sustained the builders as they kept building the Wall. Now I have grown Tropical Apples, Tropical Pears, Tropical Peaches here in Townsville and I like experimenting to see just what can be grown in our dry tropics. However, is there such a thing as a Tropical Apricot or is it possible for me to grow an apricot up here. I know it is not normally a tree of the tropics, to say the least. Also who sells them? I haven't seen them at Bunnings.

Merilyn says...
Thanks for your answer Amanda. I thought as it was an old line, that no one may answer.

Mid west WA is more further north than I thought possible. I have read where people have grown apricot trees from seed. I know that growing from seed is not usually the best way to go, and grafted is better, but anyway is worth a try. I have read where apricots are tricky to grow at the best of times.

That person is very well dressed to be sporting a whipper snipper, although the jeans verify the work was done!

. says...
There seem to be another (older?) parallel thread discussing the same topic in
https://www.daleysfruit.com.au/forum/apricot-tree-pruning/?PHPSESSID=6779dd87e2d4e715405bca862d7ae526

I tried to merge that thread with this one but somehow I could not transfer the pictures in that thread over here.
So, I am going to keep that thread, and hope to divert people to forum in this thread to keep the discussions in 1 place.

Jimmy says...
Offer the budwood to www.woodbridgefruitrees.com.au they find many old fashioned fruit in Tasmania and sell the progeny thereof.

Shaun says...
I planted this Newcastle Apricot in the pot about 2 Winters ago.
The growth was rather slow in the first Spring, and it got badly burnt by the 40 deg Celcius sun during its first Christmas Day at my back yard.
I thought it had died because it did not put out any new leaf growth during that Summer, and most branches dried out, but I left it in the pot as I was too busy then.
After the 2nd Winter, the tree sprung back to life and started to flower. It set about 6 fruits, but most dropped off before they ripen.
Only 1 fruit survived and ripen, and I have enclosed the photo here.
It was a very tasty apricot indeed, and was very much cherished.

The tree now has got new buds growing.
Have I got to prune the tree this Spring (Sep 2011) to encourage new growth?

Picture 1: The Newcastle Apricot tree in a brown pot - it sprung back to life after the 2nd Winter. You can see a sole fruit hanging on its branch (Jan 2011).

Picture 2: A close-up shot of the sole Apricot fruit that ripened (Jan 2010).

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1	Picture: 2

Victor G says...
Hello again,
Cheers Thanks for the heads up, I will contact woodbridge fruit tress and see what they say... I have left the left side, half, of the tree (heavily pruned but still growing and the right side is more or less a stump, poor girl, looks terrible, split vertically down the middle, all the centre exposed...I did not think she would survive this long... and the prunnings on the ground now flowering are over six months old, seriously large sawn off limbs, i thought were long dead, So thats great i can save her, by grafting some of these prunnings onto another tree.
Fantastic such good news,
Many Thanks Guys Much Appreciated.

Liz says...
Hey Merilyn the peachcot ora A is probably the closest to an apricot you will be able to grow in Townsville.

Merilyn says...
Hi Amanda,

You mentioned fungal infections and pollination. I do have a lot of trouble from time to time with fungal infections - currently downy mildew is on all the bushes and weeds and is now affecting my roses. I notice black spot is coming on my roses.

What fungal infections are likely to affect apricots?

About pollination, we have all sorts of bees, European honey bees, little black native bees, huge bumble bees - black and yellow 2.5 cm long, 1.2cm wide - I have never seen these before I came to Townsville from Brisbane; and blue banded bee - a black and blue bee which has a very loud buzz. I had it identified at the DPI in Oonoonba.

I have seriously thought from time to time of buying a native bee hive, so that we aren't stung. My son is quite allergic to bees and swells considerably. My daughter, wearing a big hat went to look at our neighbour's bee hive, and the bees chased her away. That gave her quite a scare. They are intelligent creatures I have discovered. My neighbour's bees came to drink water at the leaks in our rainwater tanks. He moved and took his bee hive with him. Later I found out that the hive collapsed with the force of Cyclone Yasi (probably cat 2 in his coastal town) and the bees didn't survive. He is thinking of buying another hive.

If ever I get serious and very active about an orchard, I must look into a native bee hive. I retired in July and more time in the orchard is now higher on my list of things to do. Lack of water is the big deal in Townsville from April to December. Jan to Mar is the wet season and usually there is too much water and some trees die from waterlogging.

I thought gardening was tricky in Brisbane, but that was nothing compared to Townsville and coping with dry and wet seasons and solodic clay soils where there is no top soil. It really is an all new ball game up here. I should say a challenge, as I do have a garden.

C'est la vie. Looking forward to your reply on fungal infections and pollination limitations.

Julie says...
amanda, the small apricot you mention sounds like Newcastle early, an old variety hardly anyone grows now. It doesn't need much chill. I have one,on its last legs, but doubt I could replace it.

Julie says...
Yep, that sounds like it amanda. Absolutely the best apricot for jam, apart fom eating fresh. Has a real, old-fashioned apricot flavour you don't find any more.

Used to be ready around November, but the seasons seems to get later and later.

amanda says...
It's really sad how awful the new apricots taste isn't it.. :( Seems they are going the way of commercial tomatoes. There will be a whole generation of kids raised who won't know that food used to actually taste good.

BJ says...
Amanda, what type of apricot do you have? I've been trying to get my father to try the Glengarry in the west of Brisbane. I've heard it's around 400 chill hours, which I'd imagine he'd get out there - its much colder than the northern suburbs where I am.

Julie says...
amanda says...
'It's really sad how awful the new apricots taste isn't it.. :( Seems they are going the way of commercial tomatoes. There will be a whole generation of kids raised who won't know that food used to actually taste good.'

Jamie Oliver said the same thing. Seems kids don't like strawberries, because they have only ever tasted the horrible, hard, tasteless shop-bought fruit. Yea, it is sad.

moving garden says...
Hi First time I have entered a blog site. I posted some information about an old apricot tree about a fortnight ago,that is in our back yard. I guess these are some of the replies. Would anyone know what type of apricot it is likely to be? Say over 50 years old. I am cutting out the large dead wood branches now and even cutting back some of the height. I don"t think this tree has been pruned for many many years and we thought it was dead until spring blossoms appeared.I am going to weed around the bottom and give the tree some fertilizer.
Am I doing the right thing?

peter says...
I planted about 5 years ago an Apricot tree,evrey year it blossomes but no fruit. There are 2 of them. But that one has fruit. They have same water. I fertilize it every year about 3 times. Please tell me what i should do. Thank you.

Julie W says...
My apricot and peach didn't get pruned this year (long story) and now they have just started blossoming.

I know it is too late, but does anyone know how it affects the tree if you prune this late? What actually happens?

srt says...
The party line is "Don't prune apricot in winter at all as apricot is prone to fungal infections and, in winter, healing is delayed.

BenW says...
My area was pretty badly burned out a few years ago and there were no bees at all for a while. Hand pollinating 20 peach trees with a paint brush is not fun...

VF says...
Hmm, is winter pruning a no-no in all areas? I have a Cot-n-candy Aprium, but I'm not sure if autumn pruning is best as it's generally rainy and warm here, and I would guess it may be prone to fungal infections if I pruned in those conditions? (I'm in cool subtropical area.)

Fruitylicious1 says...
Hi Jo/nikki

Normally apricot trees are pruned during late winter or early spring when they start to grow to avoid fungal diseases and to allow faster healing of the cut wounds.

Aim for a vase shape tree structure with 3-5 well spaced outward growing branches. Prune inward and middle upright growing boughs to keep the center open for better sunlight penetration and air circulation.

Seedling grown apricot trees are known to fruit between 3-5 years. Of course there is always an exception to the rule either earlier or later than the usual norm.

I have uploaded a well balanced pruned apricot tree for your perusal.

Happy gardening :-)

Pictures - Click to enlarge
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