- 1). Circle around the tree and determine the location of any suckers on the tree. Suckers are thorny shoots that have no leaves growing on them and produce no fruit. The purpose of the pruning process is to remove all suckers from the tree in order to keep it healthy.
- 2). Cut off all thin shoots with the hand shears, starting at the bottom of the tree and working your way up. Be sure to cut them as close to the trunk as possible, and to use a downward, vertical cut to prevent rotting.
- 3). Hack off any thick suckers with the long handled loppers or the pruning saw, if necessary.
- 4). Cut out any branches that cross in the center of the tree and reduce its sunlight intake.
- 5). Remove all stray shoots, twigs and dead wood that has collected in the tree. Walk around the tree several times to inspect the results of the pruning.
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