Winter Care Tips for Ornamental Fruit Trees

Most people associate gardening with warm weather, from the warming of spring to the cooling of the fall, but there are in fact a few very important steps for caring for your ornamental trees this winter. If you want to know how to care for fruit trees in the winter, think of prevention and giving them proper attention and care so they thrive the next spring!

Fall Clean Up

The first step in ensuring proper winter care is a good fall clean-up. This requires removing any rotten or dying fruits and raking up any fallen leaves. Dying fruits and fallen leaves can harbor many pests that can harm your trees!

Pruning

Pruning your trees can help prevent and limit disease during the winter and coming months. Most fruit trees are deciduous, which means they drop their leaves in the winter. These trees are best pruned while they are dormant (after the leaves have fallen), which is usually between December and early February. When you are ready to begin pruning you should:

1. Sterilize your pruners before use (check out this blog on the best way to sterilize your pruners).
2. Remove any dead, dying, or diseased branches.
3. Trim out any branches that grow straight up and root suckers (little plants that grow on the root base).

For more information on pruning during the winter, check out our blog!

Winter Spraying

After pruning, your winter care continues with spraying to control pests and diseases. Scale insects are notorious for wreaking havoc on ornamental trees and shrubs! If treatment is necessary, a tree needs to be sprayed with a dormant rate of horticultural oil during the dormant season to control overwintering scales. It is recommended to have a trusted and educated professional execute this treatment.

Waynes can assist with this! Our trained Service Professionals know all the knowledge to combat your tree and shrub needs.

For more information about soft scale, check out our blog!

Waynes Can Help!

Caring for these plants is very important. Think of healthy trees and shrubs as the perfect accessory for your landscape. Waynes Tree and Shrub Care Solutions include seasonal tree and shrub treatments throughout the year to ensure that you have a landscape you can be proud of. If you are noticing an issue with your ornamental trees or shrubs, give Waynes a call at 866-WAYNES1 or contact us today!