How to Prune an Overgrown Apple Tree

By
Marie Iannotti
Garden Writer Marie Iannotti
Marie Iannotti
Marie Iannotti is a life-long gardener and a veteran Master Gardener with nearly three decades of experience. She's also an author of three gardening books, a plant photographer, public speaker, and a former Cornell Cooperative Extension Horticulture Educator. Marie's garden writing has been featured in newspapers and magazines nationwide and she has been interviewed for Martha Stewart Radio, National Public Radio, and numerous articles.
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Updated on 06/27/22
Reviewed by
Mary Marlowe Leverette
Mary Marlowe Leverette 2018
Reviewed by Mary Marlowe Leverette
Mary Marlowe Leverette is one of the industry's most highly-regarded housekeeping and fabric care experts, sharing her knowledge on efficient housekeeping, laundry, and textile conservation. She is also a Master Gardener with over 40 years' experience; writing for over 20 years.
Learn more about The Spruce's Review Board
Pruned apple tree with vertical growing branches and red apples hanging

The Spruce / K. Dave

Project Overview
  • Working Time: 2 - 4 hrs
  • Total Time: 2 - 4 hrs
  • Skill Level: Intermediate
  • Estimated Cost: $0 to $75 (if tool purchase is needed)

If an apple tree is left unpruned for too long, it becomes overgrown, and as a result, the tree's vigor will be affected, along with its fruit production. A healthy apple tree—much like a peach tree or many other fruit trees—is not one with extremely dense branches and foliage but instead one that has plenty of space and light between the branches.

Faced with a badly overgrown tree, many gardeners fear the restoration will be complicated and are apprehensive about tackling the task. But take heart—it is almost impossible to kill a mature, overgrown apple tree by pruning it. The most complicated pruning takes place in the first three years of an apple tree's life and after this, pruning becomes a pretty easy task. The rewards of a comprehensive pruning job will be better fruit output and a much healthier tree.

When to Prune an Apple Tree

Pruning is best done in late winter while the tree is dormant, or in the early spring before new growth has begun. If possible, avoid pruning in the summer and fall, as this stimulates new, sensitive growth that may be vulnerable to insect attack and winter damage. However, clearly diseased or damaged branches should be removed whenever you spot them.

Mature apple trees will tell you when they need rigorous pruning because the fruit output begins to diminish. Most fruit trees grown in home gardens are spurring types. A spur is a short 3- to 5-inch branch where the apple tree flowers and sets fruit. These spurs diminish when the tree begins to produce suckers and when there is too much unproductive wood on the tree. By removing the suckers and bad wood through heavy pruning, the tree is stimulated to produce more fruiting spurs. And hard pruning also opens up the branches so that sunlight and air can reach all the ripening fruit.

Commercial growers perform some form of pruning on an apple tree almost every year, but for homeowners, a mature tree should be fine if it is hard-pruned every three years or so.

Tip

In addition to pruning, it's a good idea to thin out some of the unripe fruit in late May or early June 20 to 40 days after the tree blooms. You may notice that the tree automatically begins dropping immature fruits at this time, which is your signal to help out by thinning out some of the remaining fruits. Pinch off one-third to one-half of all the immature fruits. This reduction in competition will allow the tree's energy to go into making the remaining fruits larger.

Before Getting Started

Make sure your pruning tools are good and sharp before starting. Struggling to cut with dull tools can lead to accidents on a ladder. Apple trees are spiny, prickly trees that can easily pierce your skin, so make sure to wear work gloves, long sleeves, and long trousers while working.

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What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

  • Pruning shears
  • Lopping shears or saw for larger branches
  • Ladder
  • Heavy-duty gloves
  • Protective gear (safety glasses, hardhat)

Materials

  • Debris sacks

Instructions

Materials and tools to prune an overgrown apple tree

The Spruce / K. Dave

  1. Remove Bad Branches

    Start by removing any obviously dead, damaged, or diseased branches. The dead wood will be dark or brittle, often with the bark falling away and diseased wood is usually a different color than the other branches.

    An open wound on a branch is an invitation to insects and further disease, so you should prune out dead and injured wood at any time of the year.

    Dead branches from overgrown apple tree cut with bright green loppers

    The Spruce / K. Dave

  2. Remove Suckers

    Woody plants are often pruned with the goal of encouraging more growth, but not all growth is welcome. Suckers (branches growing from the base of the tree), whorls (branches that grow from and encircle another branch), and water sprouts (thin branches that usually grow straight upright) are never going to bear fruit—they just sap energy from the plant. Removing these extraneous shoots early in the pruning process will also help you better see the structure of the tree, making it easier to see where further cuts are necessary.

    Apple tree suckers cut near soil with bright green loppers

    The Spruce / K. Dave

  3. Remove Low Branches

    Get rid of any branches within about 4 feet of the ground. They'll probably be too shaded to produce any apples, and low-hanging branches just invite deer and other animals to nibble.

    Lower branches of overgrown apple tree cut with bright green loppers

    The Spruce / K. Dave

  4. Remove Problem Branches

    Now, prune out any downward-facing branches. They, too, will be shaded and unproductive.

    Next, focus on removing any branches that cross or rub against larger branches. As these grow, they will get thicker and heavier, so get rid of them now before they do damage to the "scaffold" branches that form the main shape of the tree.

    Downward facing branches cut from apple tree with loppers

    The Spruce / K. Dave

  5. Remove Competing Main Branches

    Step back, and view the tree again. It should have one main vertical leader or central trunk. The leader may be a bit curved if the tree wasn't staked as it grew, or if was bent by the wind. There is nothing wrong with this, but major side branches extending from the leader will have to go. If they are left, they will become competing branches that will distort the shape and openness of the tree. Prune them back flush to the main leader.

    Gardening Tip

    When pruning out an entire branch, cutting back to the collar of the branch, slightly away from the trunk, and then trimming along the outer edge of the collar, is a common approach.

    However, if you are merely shortening a branch, prune to an outward-facing bud—one that is directed away from the neighboring branch. Cutting just above an outward-facing bud will encourage it to sprout a new branch that will grow out and away from the other existing branch. If you cut above an inward-facing bud, it may encourage a new branch that crosses or shades the existing inner branch and it eventually will need to be removed.

    Competing main branch on top part of apple tree cut off with loppers

    The Spruce / K. Dave

  6. Clear Out the Clutter

    Now, focus on thinning out the interior branches so that sunlight can reach all of the fruits, and so that each branch sits at a nice, strong angle greater than 45 degrees from the leader. Be ruthless in this operation, but it's best not to remove more than about one-third of the tree's total mass if it's been neglected. If a tree is regularly pruned, each session can involve a reduction of about one-fifth.

    Interior branches thinned out from apple tree with loppers

    The Spruce / K. Dave

  7. Inspect the Tree

    Finally, make sure that the upper branches are shorter than the lower branches. The final result should look like a pyramid with well-spaced horizontal branches. There is truth to the old adage that tells us a bird should be able to fly through the apple tree without its wings touching a branch.

    The results may look extreme when finished, but the tree will soon bear healthier fruit and be easier to harvest as a result.

15 Types of Apple Trees to Grow
Article Sources
The Spruce uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

  1. Growing Apples in the Home Garden. University of Minnesota Extension.