Thinning fruit - bonsaiTALK Community

23-Mar-2007	#1
bonsainotwar Grower of potted sticks Join Date: Dec-2005 Location: NewMexico Country: USA USDA Zone: 6-7 AHS Heat Zone: 15 Posts: 307	Thinning fruit I recently experimented with a novel way of pollinating fruit trees.,involving my fingers,rather than a paint brush,and have had success setting fruit on my plum and cherry trees.The youngest of these trees,a cherry, has the most fruit setting on it.I have already begun to thin the fruit,by removing the least vigorous ones.I am down to two fruit on the bottom half, and an still working on the top half.My question is how many fruit should I leave on a 20-22" cherry tree ?Does the one fruit per five inches rule hold,or could I leave more on ? What would be a safe limit ?

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23-Mar-2007

jbhayman

bonsaiTALK Master

Join Date: Nov-2006

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Make it look good !!

Quote:

Originally Posted by bonsainotwar

I recently experimented with a novel way of pollinating fruit trees.,involving my fingers,rather than a paint brush,and have had success setting fruit on my plum and cherry trees.The youngest of these trees,a cherry, has the most fruit setting on it.I have already begun to thin the fruit,by removing the least vigorous ones.I am down to two fruit on the bottom half, and an still working on the top half.My question is how many fruit should I leave on a 20-22" cherry tree ?Does the one fruit per five inches rule hold,or could I leave more on ? What would be a safe limit ?

23-Mar-2007	#3
Mcspeed bonsaiTALK Master Chief Join Date: Mar-2006 Location: West Springfield Massachusetts Country: USA USDA Zone: zone 5 AHS Heat Zone: ? Posts: 1,198	What stage of developement is the tree at? Allowing a tree to fruit takes energy away from the overall vigor of the tree. In the early stages many allow no fruiting at all, then only one to a few for showing, Some even attach fruit to a tree for show, and those would come from the grocery store.Never heard of a hard and fast rule about # per size of tree, but if they are going to be allowed to grow, like jbhayman said, make it look good, but not at the expense of the trees health. __________________ If at first you don't succeed -- skydiving is not for you. Always remember that you're unique -- just like everyone else Enjoy this day. Bill

23-Mar-2007

bonsainotwar

Grower of potted sticks

Join Date: Dec-2005

Location: NewMexico

Country: USA

USDA Zone: 6-7

AHS Heat Zone: 15

Posts: 307

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mcspeed

What stage of developement is the tree at? Allowing a tree to fruit takes energy away from the overall vigor of the tree. In the early stages many allow no fruiting at all, then only one to a few for showing, Some even attach fruit to a tree for show, and those would come from the grocery store.Never heard of a hard and fast rule about # per size of tree, but if they are going to be allowed to grow, like jbhayman said, make it look good, but not at the expense of the trees health.

I read the one fruit per five inches of height rule in a couple of old bonsai books.I thought this was sort of an unofficial guide.The tree is currently is currently at a stage where I am letting a lot of branches grow,and am just piching the tips,to maintain the silhouette,the interior branch structure is by no means complete.I will probably end up cutting all the fruit off the cherries.I now know I can pollinate then successfully,even if it is an unorthodox way.

My apples are probably going to set fruit.0ne of these,is a collected tree,of a wild variety,that I estimate to be 20-30 years old.I will probably leave one fruit on this tree,just to see what the fruit looks like.

17-Apr-2008

bonsainotwar

Grower of potted sticks

Join Date: Dec-2005

Location: NewMexico

Country: USA

USDA Zone: 6-7

AHS Heat Zone: 15

Posts: 307

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mcspeed

As sort of an update,let me say,in March,I had a lot of blue orchard bees come through,now all of my bonsai that are old enough to fruit,are forming same.I have avery unusual "Methley" plum,which I have been working on since 2000,that only wants to grow as a broom bonsai.It bloomed heavily. So much so,that the flowers were causing such a strain on the tree,that the foliage had lost all of its color,literally.I guess flowers can do this as well as fruit.I have gotten rid of all the fruit,but one,on the plum,and the color is returning to the tree.

I have left two fruit,on each of my my two cherries that are fruiting.Both are about ten years old.One is about 75% trained as a bonsai,the other about 30% trained.It was thinned,as much as for vigor of the fruit as for the display quality.The least trained tree,a Prunus Cisterna,has a double fruit.

Next I start thinning my apple and my crab.I guess there is no hard and fast rule about fruiting.I have seen people who say you should skip a year, but right now I am leaning towards letting the tree have one or two fruit every year.

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