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pruning the central leader

 
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I watched Permaculture Orchard and am trying to train my fruit trees.  What do I do with the central leader?  Do I just cut it short?
 
pollinator
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Many people have good luck with bending the central leader down until it is pointing toward the ground and securing it with a string.  That seems to make trees fruit sooner as well.
 
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Andrea,
I'm a fan of Ann Ralph and her book "Grow a Little Fruit Tree". David the Good talks you through the process on You Tube.  I like to keep my trees short so the use of ladders is at a minimum. As Trace suggested bending branches over for laterals can work to train trees to fit specific areas. Might be worth a look.
 
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