what to do with overgrown espalier?

17 years ago

I have an espaliered pear with three tiers of branches, the highest of which is about 8' tall. It's been well pruned for several years. Last year, I decided to grow another tier so didn't prune one of the branches coming out of the top, much to my regret.

Life spun out of control and before I knew it, by summertime, there was one thick leader -- a trunk, in fact -- and I didn't know what to do. So I did nothing. More regret. My espalier now looks like an espalier attached to a small tree. It looks weird and neglected.

I pruned the rest of the tree but was hesitant to simply saw off the leader, and it was too stiff to bend. It's still winter here and I'm wondering if there's anything that can be done.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Featured Answer

jellyman

17 years ago

Petitprune:

We're getting a little too focused on terminology here, which is not productive. Vertical branches out the tops of trees are usually called leaders; horizontal branches, often chosen as part of a permanent structure, are called scaffolds, or sometimes laterals. What you seem to have is a vertical branch at the top of your espalier structure that grew more than you expected.

If you already have three levels on your espalier, with the top level at 8 feet, I don't really understand why you would want to create another level. One of the principal advantages of an espalier is that it can be worked without a ladder, and if you grow another level you will have to build an additional support and use a ladder to care for the newly created level, presumably at about 11 feet. So my advice would be to keep your espalier at its existing 3 levels.

If you want to remove the new leader that grew in, just take your pruning saw and cut if off. Now or whenever. Don't worry about sealers and such as that. I have to confess I don't really see an issue here at all.

You have experienced a teachable moment. Espalier culture requires a higher level of pruning attention than stand-alone trees. I see no reason why you should not be able to restore your espalier to its former appearance.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

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Comments (8)

turtleman49
17 years ago
Whats the size of the scaffold?
If your still dormant you shouldn't have a problem with topping it
petitprune
Original Author
17 years ago
Thanks for your response. I have it tied to wire running between two 8' 2 x 4s. Is that what you mean by scaffold? To keep it from breaking if I saw it? Should I put anything on the wound?
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turtleman49
17 years ago
By scaffold I'm referring to the limb/branch that is going to be cut. In our orchard we top some of our trees that have 3 and 4 inch scaffolds (sometimes larger). In the orchard and in the nursery we usually do not use a wound heal material as long as the trees are dormant. If the tree is budding out and starting to show active growth we will, but most of the time all the pruning is done by then..
It won't hurt anything by adding some sealer to your cut, if you only have a few trees I'd say go ahead and add a wound sealer.. If you had several hundred trees I'd say don't waste the time!... LOL
petitprune
Original Author
17 years ago
You learn something new every day! I had no idea that that was another meaning of "scaffold." The scaffold that is going to be cut is about 3" in diameter, and about 18 inches above the top tier of the espalier. It really took off this year. When you top your trees with 3" and 4" scaffolds, is that height or diameter?
petitprune
Original Author
17 years ago
I just measured the tree with a tape rather than my (very unreliable it seems) memory. The scaffold is only 1" in diameter, except at the base where it's maybe an 1 1/2". The height of the scaffold is about 2 1/2 to 3 feet.
petitprune
Original Author
17 years ago
Thanks, Don, that's great news. I was worried that...oh, never mind! You make a good point about the height being an advantage and any higher being a pita. And you make some other good points, too. Thanks for your advice; I feel much relieved.
snow moonelk
4 years ago
I have inherited an old apple orchard of all espaliers. it teally is a mess. I have taken off a lot of water sprouts, but there are rotten limbs, wire running through the trunks themselves, the trees are too tall and too wide. I would like to regenerate the trees. Is it possible to un-espalier them?