This is a traditional open center peach tree, which many orchards in the southeast are trained
to.
We call it an open center or a vase system.
All the branches are going out at approximately a forty-five angle with the center of the
tree open.
An open center tree is primarily used to accommodate the high vigor that peach trees can have and
to get rid of some of the shading issues with that excessive growth.
If we would look at an open center tree we start at the base.
This one started out with three primarily scaffold branches.
We come up approximately eighteen inches to two foot.
And then these primary scaffolds branch.
And then we’d come up another two to three foot and then they branch again.
And then off from these main scaffolds we take the fine fruiting one.
The red wood is what we’re after.
The red wood about the size of a pencil is going to be the most productive for the peach
tree.
This is approximately a seven year old peach tree.
It’s trained to open center.
It has been pruned annually from the day it was planted.
And we’re going to prune it again today for, so we can maximize fruit production in
the years to come.
The first thing we would do on a tree like this is we would get rid of the upright growth.
In the center of the tree, the open center tree, the center has to be open as the name
implies or a vase.
The first thing that we want to do is get rid of this upright growth.
So growth growing up, straight upright or into the center of the tree will be removed.
We can also look at, we have the framework of the tree with our major scaffold branches
coming up, cause this one is forked here, and it’s forked over there.
So, if these upright branches we’re going to get rid of the growth also growing upright
off these lateral branches.
With our scaffold branches we want to continue the growth upward at approximately a forty-five
degree angle.
So go out to the tips, find growth that continues up.
At least a forty-five degree angle and they will maintain nodes.
Again growth growing straight up and coming straight down underneath that will be shaded
is also removed.
Again, the lateral fruiting branches we will head those back to stiffen.
It’s also to remove some of the fruit buds at the ends.
You can look at many of these branches have a weeping growth habit to them.
Those were branches that were headed last year.
We had three to four peaches on those branches.
And you’ll notice as they go below horizontal we will remove those, are many branches that
curve, go (unintelligible) horizontal.
But in the process they send out a lateral branch continuing upward.
So what we will do, we will cut the low hanging branches to upward growing branches.
And we do that around the tree.
Growth that’s growing underneath will be eliminated and that growing in the center
of the tree.
Again continuing out, you can see how the, the central leader or excuse me the scaffold
branch here has lost its dominance.
It is down because fruit weight has pulled it down.
We have a branch that is continuing up, so we’ll cut out the old scaffold branch to
an upward growing one so that we continue our scaffold branch on which we can have lateral
shoots, which will provide the fruit for us.
In the southeast most of our peach growers will want to do most of the work from the
ground.
So they limit the height of the tree.
So, we will go up approximately seven to eight foot and then we will head off the scaffold
branch to maintain the growth from approximately that point down.
Then growth in the center is removed.
Growth growing straight up is removed.
Notice we do not leave stubs when we make the cuts.
We make them flush so we do not encourage regrowth.
This is our finished tree after our dormant pruning for a seven year old tree.
You notice we’re maintaining the upward growth of our scaffold branches, keeping them
up at approximately a forty-five degree angle.
Off from our scaffold branches we’re keeping as much of the fruity wood, the red wood if
you will, that’s going to be bearing fruit for this coming season.
Keeping them as much as possible that’s growing out to the side.
Not going straight up, going straight down.
And then we’re heading that back so that those branches will be stiff, so they can
bear the full crop of fruit that will be forming this year.
For more information on training and pruning fruit trees you can refer to this publication,
published by the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service and it can be found on the
website at the bottom of this screen.