Winter Pruning

Now that harvest is complete, attention is now focused on winter pruning. Pruning, while it is expensive, can be very beneficial to the health of your orchards. Most growers are cutting out deadwood, EFB infected trees, and pruning young trees to establish strong scaffolding.

Cutting out dead wood is something that is done every year. Removing that wood can ease the strain of harvest by removing potential large wood that can cause an equipment breakdown.

Cleaning up/cutting suckers during the winter months can help with efficiency of herbicide applications during the growing season.

Pruning out blighted limbs caused by EFB can help with the longevity of your orchards. A practice that can be very beneficial from limiting the spread of the disease is sanitizing your pruning/cutting equipment before you change to another orchard site. A dilution of bleach is a good way to sanitize shears.

Pruning young trees can help the development of the tree itself. Forming the tree to allow sunlight penetration, strong scaffolding, and promote new growth can establish and promote a strong tree.
For a list of suggested pruners, please contact Ryan Flaherty at (503)278-2622 or ryan.flaherty@hazelnut.com

HGO’s suggestion is to practice Good Ag Practices (GAP) at the farm. The things you do as a grower to help with food safety on the farm, falls in line with our dedication to HGO’s SQF level 3 certification.
Cheers to a new year and a successful 2020 growing season.