We are pruning our organic orange orchard as you can see it has a lot of flowers and we expect a lot of production for the next harvest.
Here is a tree that is half clemenvilla mandarin and half orange, we are cutting back the orange tree so that the mandarin grows more, as we are interested in having more harvest.
Pruning orange trees, like other cultivation practices, has evolved in terms of its objectives and the way in which it is carried out. The most significant technical changes that have influenced the evolution of pruning are the new rootstocks. As a consequence of the “tristeza” virus, we had to change the rootstock of that time, which was the bitter orange tree, and its use as a rootstock was forbidden. Tolerant rootstocks such as the trifoliate (Citrange Troyer, Citrange Carrizo) Citrumelo, Citrus Volkameriana, and the one we are using for oranges, the Forner Alcaide Nº 5, a vigorous semi-dwarf rootstock so that it does not grow too high and is easier to harvest the oranges and produces high quality fruit of good size, as it is more vigorous than the bitter orange tree and normally brings forward the entry into production, they are more productive, the main problem is that they have a shorter productive life. This requires light pruning that does not delay early entry into production. Therefore, excessive pruning to increase size causes more problems and less production than light pruning. The new varieties allow citrus fruit to be available almost all year round. This shows the existence of a large number of varieties that, for different reasons, require different pruning treatments.
The planting systems used are also different from those of previous periods. The way of placing the orange trees has changed. The real frame gives way to the rectangular system and the work is carried out in a single direction between the rows of trees that form a kind of hedge or barrier in which the tops of the trees come together. When pruning, the space available must be taken into account in order to distribute the vegetation well.
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