How to Prune a Mandarin Orange Tree? Detailed Guide to Pruning Methods

Mandarin oranges are a common fruit, and many people love eating them, so quite a few growers cultivate mandarin orange trees. Pruning mandarin orange trees is a very troublesome task. Let's take a look below at the pruning methods for mandarin orange trees.

I. Pruning requirements for each growth stage

1. Vegetative growth stage: On the basis of trunk formation and shaping of the nursery stock, the main focus is on shaping and developing the canopy. In the first and second years after planting, continue to develop the main branches and select and retain secondary main branches, and arrange side branches so that the tree shape is compact and the branches and leaves are luxuriant. Develop 3 to 4 flushes of shoots each year to form the canopy as quickly as possible, and remove flower buds promptly.

2. Growth and fruiting stage: Continue to develop the canopy and bear a moderate amount of fruit. Promote 2-3 new flushes of shoots each year, with branches and shoots evenly spaced, to form a compact canopy as quickly as possible. The middle and upper parts of the plant should bear no fruit or few fruit during the day, and pruning should mainly consist of bud removal and shoot control.

3. Full fruiting stage: Tree height is generally controlled below 250cm, the canopy is open, with an uneven outer periphery, branches and shoots grow vigorously, and the green leaf layer thickness should be more than 100cm, with good ventilation and light penetration and three-dimensional fruiting. Control crossing between rows, with canopy coverage of 75%-85%. Pruning should be suited to the tree: remove dense growth and keep sparse growth, remove weak growth and keep strong growth; prune the upper part and keep the lower part, prune the outer part and keep the inner part; prune heavily for trees with many flowers and lightly for trees with few flowers.

4. Aging stage: Carry out renewal pruning, using renewal or thinning of old fruiting branch groups to force out new fruiting branch groups in the inner canopy or lower part, maintain sprouts and tillers, remove dense growth and keep sparse growth, arrange them evenly, prune heavily when there are many flowers, and appropriately prune heavily for weak trees.

II. Pruning periods

Spring from early February to mid-March; summer and autumn from early July to mid-August. In addition, from late April to early July, carry out auxiliary pruning such as bud removal, shoot control, and cutting flower branches.

III. Pruning methods

Flexibly manage according to the characteristics of each variety and the vigor of the tree.

1. Trees with many flowers should be pruned heavily, combining thinning with heading back; trees with few flowers should be pruned lightly, only thinning out some dense branches and thin, weak branches.

2. Dead branches and branches with severe disease or pest damage should be completely cut off from the base.

3. Aging branch groups should be renewed by heading back or thinned out, and the length of renewal branches depends on the strength and position of the branch group.

4. Crossing branches and water sprouts should in principle be cut off from the base, but when the middle and lower parts of the canopy are relatively empty, they may be appropriately headed back to serve as renewal branches or to fill gaps; dense branches should be appropriately thinned out, and overly long ones should be pinched.

Pruning mandarin orange trees is actually fairly simple. In addition to pruning, attention should also be paid to water and fertilizer management.