A Practical "Visual Guide" for March Pruning of Young High Density Plantings
A Practical "Visual Guide" for March Pruning of Young and Semi-Young High Density Apple Plantings
Mario Miranda Sazo
The document is a practical and colorful visual guide that shows some important pruning cuts to better grow and train the "money makers" Gala, Honeycrisp, and Fuji trees. The pruning cut decisions are easy to follow and their objectives are simple: (1) help the tree to grow as quickly as possible to the top of the wire and (2) select planar, horizontal, more open one-year old shoots to secure the production of fine fruiting units. In the next 15-20 days, you (and your pruning crews) will be influencing a lot the future productivity of new apple plantings. If you do a good job, you will positively control the distribution and utilization of sunlight, the quality of foliage, the shape and condition of the canopy, and more importantly, the mass and ratio of structural wood and fruiting wood. Good luck this coming season!, and always try to prune smarter not harder!
A Visual Guide for Pruning of Young and Semi-Young High Density Apple Plantings (pdf; 23273KB)
- A practical and colorful visual guide that shows some important pruning cuts
Spanish Translated Version (pdf; 19551KB)
- Guia visual de poda para arboles de manzanos nuevos y semi-adultos en alta densidad
Upcoming Events
Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) Training & Food Safety Plan-Writing Workshop
February 2 - February 3, 2023
Newark, NY
Goals of this workshop:
- Understand how GAPs (Good Agricultural Practices) impact produce safety, and how you can improve practices on your farm to reduce the risk of microbial contamination
- Learn the difference between a FSMA Inspection and a GAPs audit, and learn what is needed to have a USDA GAP/GHP audit and the 2 types (Basic & Harmonized)
- Begin writing a farm food safety plan that complies with a USDA GAP/GHP Audit
This workshop is targeted at Mott's growers who need to have a successful GAP audit for the 2023 harvest. However, all farms and organizations are invited to attend.
We will have several breaks, including a lunch break, scattered throughout the day, but feel free to step away whenever you need to. Lunch and snacks provided. Note: All times are approximate. Time spent on each topic varies depending on audience and questions/discussion. There will be time for questions at the end of each section and a final opportunity for questions when we close for the day.
Instructors Confirmed: Craig Kahlke (CCE-LOF), Robert Hadad (CCE-CVP), Caroline Boutard-Hunt (CCE-Yates), Judy Wright (CCE-Seneca), and Representatives from NYS Dept. of Ag & Mkts.
How Profitable Will My New Orchard Investment Be? 1-day, hands-on skills class
February 7, 2023
Highland, NY
The Eastern NY Commercial Hort Team and the Lake Ontario Fruit Team are offering a 1-day, hands-on course at 5 locations in NYS in January and February for tree fruit farms on using farm financial information and other resources to make decisions about long-term investments or changes to their business. We will apply the techniques covered in the 8-part webinar series in December to scenarios using sample financial data from fruit farms in NYS.
Apple Leafcurling Midge IPM - Webinar

February 16, 2023
In recent years, the apple leafcurling midge (ALCM) has become an increasingly problematic pest in many orchards across the northeast.