What to Prune in Early Fall (and What to Leave Alone)

✂️ Most people think pruning is a winter job. And for some trees, it is. But there's a whole set of cuts you should be making right now, in early autumn, that most gardeners miss — and getting them wrong can cost you next year's harvest, or a whole plant. Here's what to prune now, and what you must not touch until winter. 🍒 *Stone fruit — cherries & plums* — the one rule you must not break: never prune these in the cold. Winter cuts let in deadly silver leaf and canker. Prune now, while it's mild and dry and the tree can heal. Light cuts only. 🍎 *Trained trees — cordons & espaliers* — prune now, not winter. Shorten this year's new shoots to a few buds, and the tree builds fruiting spurs instead of a mess of leaves. 🫐 *Summer raspberries* — cut every cane that fruited this year right down to the ground; keep and tie in the fresh green canes. That's next year's crop. 💜 *Lavender & herbs* — shear lightly over the green after flowering, and NEVER cut into the old bare wood — it won't regrow. 🚫 *Leave alone until winter* — free-standing apples and pears, and spring-flowering shrubs (prune those now and you cut off next spring's flowers). Hard cuts now force soft growth the frost will kill. Pruning isn't hacking a plant back — it's deciding where its energy goes, at the right moment. What are you pruning this fall? Tell me in the comments 👇 For more of the old ways of feeding a family from a small piece of land, subscribe. #pruning #fruittrees #growyourownfood #homesteading #orchard #gardeningtips #fallgardening #prunelavender #raspberries #stonefruit #selfsufficiency #ediblegarden #growfruit #gardeningtips101 #autumngarden