buds are generated mainly on one-year-old wood that can be shortened to encourage spur growth after harvest or left

to develop a replacement branch. In espaliered trees shorten side growth to six leaves in spring and back to three after harvest.

Fruit thinning
Almost all plums need fruit thinning to reduce the burden of the crop. The European plum is slightly smaller than the Japanese so thin to 5 to 7 cm spacings. Japanese plums are best at 7 to 10 cm spacings. Thinning by hand can be tedious; hitting the branches with a rubber hose-tipped stick is much more satisfying, if less accurate.

Figure 6.32 Pomegranates flower and fruit on short shoots or spurs near the ends of branches.

Harvest
Plums are best straight from the tree. When they are fully coloured for their cultivar and showing just a touch of softness, gently twist them off.

Pomegranates sucker freely which can be an advantage in very cold climates if the shrub is grown on its own roots, but generally it is just a nuisance, robbing the main plant of vigour. Remove all suckers as soon as you see them (see page 46, Suckers). Always purchase a named variety as they vary widely in quality and do not come true from seed. The dwarf pomegranate P. granatum nana is truly revolting to eat, no matter how ornamental.

Pomegranate Punica granatum

Pomegranates may not be an essential food but their gnarled beauty and fantastic fruits make them a treat for the landscape as well as the table. This shrubby tree, deciduous in cool climates but evergreen in warmer parts, adapts willingly to many soil types. They will even survive very frosty areas. In regions where the temperature does not go below 5 to 7C, it is best trained to a short trunk with four or five main branches. A multi-stemmed tree is the best approach in really cold areas because if one trunk is killed by frost, there are others left to continue.

Fruiting wood
Pomegranates flower and fruit on short shoots or spurs near the ends of branches. These remain productive for three to four years, after which time they should be cut to a younger side branch to renew the fruiting wood.

Pruning time
Winter is a good time to assess the shape of your plant and perhaps remove a very old branch that is no longer productive. This will stimulate new growth. Select the most robust as a replacement branch. Pruning the four- to

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five-year-old wood back to a side shoot can be done at harvest.

Maintenance
Pomegranates need very little attention apart from clearing tangled wood, a bit of branch renewal encouraging new growth, and by removing old fruiting wood. The major task is to control sucker growth as described on page 46.

Harvest
Always harvest the fruit before it splits, as the fruit will rot rapidly. Pick when they start to redden in late autumn and before any heavy rain as this promotes splitting. Handle pomegranates gently as they bruise easily despite their firm skin. The unbroken and unbruised fruit will store for a month or more some say the flavour even improves.

Figure 6.33 Quince blossoms are bourne singly making them both large and graceful.

Fruiting wood
Quinces fruit on the current seasons growth from a fat elongated bourse functioning a little like a spur that carries both fruit and wood buds (see Figure 6.34). The new growth from this structure carries the blossom (see Figure 6.35).

Quince Cydonia oblonga

There is nothing quite as opulent as a quince in flower or fruit. Unlike many fruit trees their blossoms appear singly so they are of generous proportions (see Figure 6.33). Quinces are self-fertile and are one of the easiest and most low-maintenance trees to grow. They can be trained as a fan espalier, lowbranching open vase or a pyramid or spindle (see page 126). They are charming as an informal tree, however, with five to six main branches originating about 20 to 30 cm from the ground. Shortening back the main stems by about two-thirds for the first two years of growth and keeping the centre clear will provide a stable framework from which to fruit.

Pruning time and maintenance

Winter is a good time to see any crowded or crossing growth and pruning at this time will

2 1

Figure 6.34 The growth that produced the just harvested fruit and that will produce next seasons bourse (1). The bourse from which the growth was developed (2).

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PRUNING FOR FLOWERS AND FRUIT