This is when to prune pear trees to ensure a fruitful harvest year after year

Understanding when to prune a pear tree can be daunting. Choose the wrong time, and you may affect your fruit harvest next year. But choose the right time, and you’ll be able to reward yourself with an unlimited supply of pear crumble.

Pruning is essential if you have a fruit tree in your garden. This process helps to protect the tree from unwanted diseases and encourages new growth, but it has to be done at the right time to be effective. So, when is the best time to prune a pear tree?

If you’re new to the pear tree world or you just want a refresher to help bring your garden ideas to life, we’ve asked the experts to share their top tips on when and how to prune pear trees.

When to prune pear trees

While trees, in general, may seem robust and low-maintenance – and pear trees are among the easiest fruit trees to grow – it’s important to keep on top of pruning. Even dwarf pear trees, which are among the best fruit trees for a small garden, will benefit from pruning each year to maintain shape and healthy growth.

And just as you should know when to prune an acer, you should also know when to prune a pear tree.

Steve Chilton, garden expert at LeisureBench, suggests, ‘Here in the UK, I recommend pruning pear trees during winter when the trees are dormant and the leaves have fallen off the tree. This should be some time between late November and early March.’

‘You should avoid pruning them during freezing weather conditions or when the tree is actively growing, just to prevent damage and ensure the tree can properly heal after pruning.’

Steve Chilton

Steve is a passionate and knowledgeable garden expert with several years of experience within the field and has developed strong expertise for all things nature and plants. Steve is a keen educator and loves to share this knowledge with others. He strives to simplify complex garden practices and encourage eco-friendly gardening.

Harry Bodell, gardening expert at PriceYourJob.co.uk agrees. ‘In winter, the tree’s energy is diverted into its root system and away from the branches, making it the perfect time to tidy up the tree and remove any dead, diseased or crossed branches.’

‘Pruning too early can result in the tree sending out tender shoots, which may then be damaged by frost. This can lead to the introduction of fungi, bacteria, and pests.’

So, it’s best to add pruning your pear tree to your list of jobs to do in the garden in November. But if you’re too stacked with sowing fruits and vegetables for winter or cutting your lawn for the final time, you don’t need to worry.

There’s a fairly big window to prune your pear tree. You just need to make sure that you’ve pruned it before next spring.

How to prune pear trees

Now you know when to prune pear trees, it’s important to understand how to prune a pear tree. Of course, every tree is different - but as long as you follow these basic instructions, you should be able to keep your pear tree in tip-top shape throughout the winter months.

What you’ll need

• Gardening gloves
• Pruning shears
• Pruning saw
• Ladder

Step-by-step

1. Remove dead or diseased branches

Before you start pruning your pear tree, work on removing any dead or diseased branches. There’s no use in them staying on the tree, especially as diseased branches can potentially infect the rest of the tree.

So, cut off any branches that break easily or have deep cracks or holes in the bark. Keep an eye out for any abnormalities in the bark, too, as this normally indicates that the branch is diseased.

2. Remove crossing or downward-growing branches

Next, you want to take a good look at the pear tree and see whether you have any crossing branches. These could be bending around each other or rubbing together completely. If you spot any, it’s better to keep the branch that’s facing outward. However, you can remove both if that’s easier.

When you’ve done that, look for any branches that are growing downward. These won’t help your pear tree in any way and may hinder the growth of branches growing upward, so it’s best to remove these, too.

3. Prune 10% of the canopy

To keep your pear tree in good shape during the winter months and encourage better spring growth, you need to prune your canopy. However, pruning too much can encourage the growth of water shoots - smaller upright shoots that can crowd the tree and take away vital energy from the fruit-growing branches.

Steve suggests, ‘Cut around 10% of the canopy of the tree off. I recommend not cutting too much, so starting with 10% is ideal.’

The aim is to cut off a small amount of old wood every single year, as this will give new wood the chance to grow. And while pears grow on old wood, they prefer older wood that is still relatively young. So, by removing some of the much older wood every year, you can keep your tree fresh and healthy.

FAQs

Choosing when to prune pear trees needn’t be stressful. After all, you’ve got a fairly big window to complete this garden task.