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Show Winter pruning There have been a number of people wondering about pruning their raspberries, grapes and fruit trees this time of year. It is best not to prune anything during the late fall or early winter. Severe damage can occur to plants if they are prunded before a major freeze. For the backyard gardener with Just a few trees and plants to prune, (it would be best to wait until the first part of March to start pruning. The ideal time to prune most trees 'is just before the buds open up. This way, the pruning will heal quickly, since the new growth will start soon. In commercial orchards, it is often necessary to do some pruning during the winter months due to the large number of trees that have to be done. When this is the case, prune the hardier varieties first, such as apples and pears. Should any of your trees have dead, diseased or broken branches on them, they need to be pruned out as soon as possible. If there are limbs on trees that hang over the house, causing potential problems during the winter, they should be cut off before the snow flies. |