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Cherry blossom tree pruning


7 Simple Steps To Prune Your Flowering Cherry Tree

Is your flowering cherry tree looking like it woke up with a severe case of bed head? Well, it may be time to break out the pruning shears. What are the best ways to prune your flowering cherry tree?

Properly pruning flowering cherry trees encourages flowering and fresh growth. It also removes dead branches and abnormalities. You should prune your flowering cherry tree in the late winter, early spring, or immediately after blooming using pruning sheers while removing any damaged branches.

Keep reading to learn the best ways to prune your flowering cherry trees, and when to manage this task. Even if you have no experience in trimming trees, you will have the confidence and know-how to trim your flowering cherry tree and keep it healthy for many years to come.

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Why Do Flowering Cherry Trees Need Pruning?

Ornamental trees like the flowering cherry need regular maintenance to remain healthy, encourage new growth and allow the beautiful blooms to greet you with bright vitality every spring. Without proper pruning, the tree can overcrowd itself, branches can rub across each other, leaving open wounds. This can make it look rather unattractive in your yard. 

The blossoms are quite beautiful, and they may bring a pleasant scent to your garden.

Some trees, like the flowering cherry tree, also have dense growth patterns and, left alone, will become too dense to be properly healthy. Pruning once a year will thin them out and help to reduce the possibility of fungal growth because of the increased sunlight and airflow between branches and foliage. 

If you are looking into different types of ornamental, or mock, cherry trees, you can find information here in our article about the types of mock cherry trees and where they grow!

Pruning Keeps The Tree Healthy

Regular pruning on your flowering cherry tree will extend the life of your tree by keeping it healthy. Removing dead and afflicted branches allows the tree to grow stronger because it spends less energy on problem areas. Pruning also eases overcrowding of branches and removes branches rubbing across each other, which could cause problems later on. 

When you prune and trim your tree properly, it keeps the canopy—the top, the foliage-covered section of the tree—open and able to get plenty of airflow and sunlight. This helps make the foliage and flowers resist fungal growth as the airflow removes more of the problematic spores.

Regular pruning also removes weaker branches, which could break off and open the tree up to pests and infections. 

Overgrown and improperly maintained trees can become weak and unhealthy. If the branches and foliage of the tree are too dense, this can weaken the tree. Dead branches can accumulate and cause more problems as well.

Not to mention, when a tree is not pruned properly, it just makes the tree look bad and unattractive.   

Pruning Is Preventative Maintenance

Pruning your trees also lets you see and remove potential problems before they can manifest into bigger issues. When you are pruning your trees, you can see if there is something wrong with them, almost like your yearly checkup at the doctor. 

Sometimes rubbing branches can open up the bark and expose the inside of the tree, leaving the area weak and susceptible to infections. While pruning, you will notice little signs such as weakness, pests capable of harming the tree, or infections you need to remove before the tree needs professional care.  

Proper Pruning Does Not Harm The Tree

When you perform regular, proper pruning, it helps to strengthen the tree. Pruning removes afflicted and infected branches and leaves, leaving energy for the tree to focus on regular growth, making the tree stronger and healthier.

Trees can heal themselves faster after a proper trimming. If pruning is not maintained, branches can break off, leaving hard to heal wounds that open up the tree for infections and pests. It’s just like if we get a cut and do not treat it properly, it takes longer to heal, and can cause bigger problems later on. 

Pruning Makes The Tree More Attractive

Trees in the forest, growing wild, with branches all over the place, moss creeping up the trunk and dripping off the branches, have a certain rugged appeal. However, most people do not want a wild, unruly-looking mess in their front yards or gardens.

You bought a flowering cherry tree to show off the beautiful blooms, attractive bark on the trunk, and the appealing shape of the canopy. By following this guide, you can keep your tree appealing and attractive.

When you do not trim your flowering cherry tree, it can quickly start to look unkempt, and be a big eyesore compared to the neatly trimmed hedges and lush carpet of maintained grass. Pruning your tree keeps the attractive shape, encourages more blooms, and healthy, full foliage, adding to the overall appeal to your yard.

When Should You Prune A Flowering Cherry Tree?

Now you know why a flowering cherry tree needs to be pruned, so let’s get into the proper times you should trim your tree. Yes, there are certain times when it is beneficial to trim your tree, and others when it is not advised. 

If you prune your trees at improper times, you could do more harm than good. It may send your tree into shock, effectively showing down growth for a season, and causing it to look sickly. Trees have growing stages. In the winter they lay dormant, and grow little, if at all, while in fall they are trying to store up energy for the long, cold winter. 

Not all trees are the same, and you can prune some during dormant stages without harm, but in this article, we are only focusing on flowering cherry trees. If you have questions about when or how much you can prune other trees on your property, please consult a professional arborist or tree specialist to answer your questions.  

Below we will go over the best times for pruning your flowering cherry trees are.

Trim Cherry Trees In Late Winter Or Early Spring

Do not start the pruning on your flowering cherry tree in late fall or early winter because the tree is trying to store up energy for the long dormant season. It will not have the proper time or energy to seal off the open cuts made from pruning.

Wait until late winter or early spring for your area to do most of your cherry tree pruning because the tree is about to exit the dormant stage and it will be more able to heal itself where the branches were cut. The tree will have plenty of energy to deal with the pruning at this time of the growth period. This is also the time for your heavier pruning. 

During late winter or early spring, pruning will be easier because all the foliage is gone, and you can see the branches better. There will not be a thick canopy of leaves getting in the way and blocking the view. You can better see if branches are rubbing on each other, where the dead wood is, and if there are any unhealthy areas you need to remove. 

Trim Immediately After Blooming

You can also start your pruning after the cherry tree has finished blooming to help promote new growth and production of more flowers next year. Do not wait long after the blooms have fallen, though. Trim immediately after blooming, or wait until next season.

During this time, keep the pruning light. Just trim off smaller branches to promote better growth and accentuate the shape of the tree you are looking for. Leave larger branches and heavier trimming for late winter or early spring. 

How To Prune Your Flowering Cherry Tree Properly

First off you want to stand back to get a good feel for your tree and notice the natural growth patterns. Does it droop down like an umbrella, does it grow upward toward the sun, or does it bush out in an oval or circular pattern? Contour your tree to the natural shape it takes on.

This also helps you to formulate a plan for pruning your tree. 

Make sure you have time to step back and look at the progress after each cut. It pays to be methodical, or you could end up with a lopsided tree that has lost all its beautiful appeal.

1. Remove Unhealthy Branches

When cutting back the branches or removing unhealthy branches, cut them back to a healthy part of the tree. Do not leave a long piece of stub sticking out, as this could cause the branch to continue rotting. Cut it back to a healthy side shoot, as this will promote the section to grow stronger.

If you have to remove an entire branch, you want to cut it just above the branch collar. The branch collar is where the bark around the bottom of the branch looks wrinkled up. You want to cut straight as possible just above the branch collar to help the tree heal itself faster.

Cuts need to be straight, clean, and cut with a properly sized tool. If the cut is frayed, crushed, or the branch splits while cutting, get a larger tool and cut it again. 

Hand shears are for branches only about the width of a pencil to ½ of an inch. Loppers will cut branches up to 1½ inches thick, whereas the saw will cut larger branches. 

If a branch breaks during the cut, clean it up and make the cut as clean as possible, so it is easier for the tree to heal itself.

2. Do Not “Top” Your Tree

“Topping” a tree refers to cutting nearly all the growth off a tree to shorten the height or restrict its growth. This practice will severely shorten the life of a tree and opens it up to a host of problems it may never recover from. 

Topping a tree is really never a good idea. It removes the main leader and branches, which can leave the tree wounded and unable to heal properly. This practice can also shorten the life of the tree greatly.

3. Remove Any Dead Branches

Now that you are ready to trim, look for any dead, or damaged growth on your flowering cherry tree and remove those first. Once all the undesirable branches are gone from the tree, again step back from the tree to see what it looks like now. 

It’s easy to start trimming, get into the “zone” and then realize you may have gotten a little overzealous. Now it looks like the Charlie Brown Christmas tree. 

4. Clean Out The Tree’s Canopy

Next, you want to clear the clutter and open up the canopy. You are not looking to cut the top completely off, but you want the tree opened up. This is so air can easily circulate through the fully leafed-out branches. 

A good rule of thumb here is to be able to see patches of sky through the canopy of your flowering cherry tree. Opening it up like this also allows sunlight to penetrate the inner and lower branches and leaves. This helps the tree grow stronger, healthier, and produce more food for itself. 

Again, after each cut, stand back and look at the tree and plan your next section to trim. There is no rush! You would not rush a fine painting, so do not rush the trimming of your tree either.  

5. Remove Undesirable Branches

Look out for branches crossing or rubbing on each other. Rubbing branches can open up wounds and expose the tree to afflictions. Cut one of these branches off to prevent further problems. 

The same goes for branches crossing each other. They may not be causing a problem now, but during a growing season, the branches could start rubbing or even start growing into each other. 

Other branches to look out for are branches shooting straight up, or water sprouts. The problem with water sprouts is they typically grow faster than other branches on the tree and can break off easily with gusts of wind. Remove any water sprouts you see. 

Any branches of the flowering cherry tree growing toward the inside of the tree or other branches need to be removed next. These types of branches will only cause problems, and it is best to trim them off before they can. 

You want to be left with branches growing outward in uniform patterns. They need to be relatively evenly spaced, neat, and open enough to allow plenty of airflow. 

6.

Trim Any Suckers

Suckers are small branches at the bottom of the tree along with its root system. These suckers do exactly as they are called—they suck energy from the rest of the tree. They are an attempt to grow more branches.

However, the problem, aside from usually looking unattractive, is they take a lot of energy and slow the growth of the rest of the tree. 

Remove these suckers from the base of the tree and any other branches along the trunk to keep the attractive allure of your flowering cherry. 

7.

Step Back And Take Another Look

Now that you have trimmed the canopy, removed any dead, broken, or abnormal-looking branches, and cleared away any suckers at the base of your tree, how does it look? Is it looking lean and healthy?

Trim off any small growth growing outside of the natural habit of the tree. You want to shape it now to make it look more attractive and uniform. This part of the pruning should be light and only to accentuate the tree because you have done all the heavy pruning before this step.

If your tree looks pleasing and you are happy with the look, congratulations, you have successfully trimmed your flowering cherry tree! Now all you need to do is clean up the trimmed branches and clean and disinfect your tools for later use. 

What Tools Do You Need For Cherry Tree Pruning?

Before you hack away at your cherry tree, make sure you have the proper equipment. You will need:

The THANOS A1101 Extendable Anvil Loppers are a great option if you are looking for tools to prune your larger trees. They can easily chop through branches 2 inches in diameter. It can also be adjusted to lengths between 27 and 40 inches to fit your needs.

If you already have these tools in your shed or garage and have been using them, make sure you clean and disinfect them before trimming your ornamental cherry. You can use a 70% rubbing alcohol to clean the cutting surfaces of these tools.

Disinfecting your blades before using them will prevent cross-contamination between trees and other plants. Once the tools are clean and disinfected, do not forget to oil them to prevent rust. 

If you are still uncomfortable about pruning your tree, or if it is very tall and you are not completely comfortable on a ladder, then consult a professional in your area. Make sure they have experience with ornamental trees and will not just lop all the branches off.

Wound Paints Are Not Needed

In the gardening section of your local hardware store, there are undoubtedly plenty of tree stump sealants, or wound paints claiming to help promote the health and vitality of trees after trimming them. Maybe you have seen the black or white telltale markings on trees after they have been trimmed, but you do not need these.

They come in convenient spray cans and tell claim you need the product, but a tree is better off taking care of its own wounds. Trees have their own arsenal to deal with pruning wounds. If pruning is done at the proper time, then it does not harm the tree and they can heal themselves easily.

The article, Caring for Cherry Trees in Washington DC by the National Park Service, says they no longer use wound paints for cherry trees! Wound paints are no longer seen as an effective way to prevent or reduce decay, or insect infestations on flowering cherry trees.

  

There You Have It!

Flowering cherry trees are a beautiful addition to your yard or garden and, with a little maintenance, they will continue to grace your space with years of beauty.  

As you have read, proper pruning during the correct time is beneficial for a tree’s overall longevity. Pruning keeps the tree strong, growing better, encourages more blooms and foliage, and is necessary for the extended life of a tree.

Here are the 7 simple steps to prune your flowering cherry tree:

  1. Remove unhealthy branches
  2. Do not “top” your tree
  3. Remove and dead branches
  4. Clean out the tree’s canopy
  5. Remove undesirable branches
  6. Trim and suckers
  7. Step back and take another look

Pruning your flowering cherry trees need not be a daunting or monumental task. With the right tools, a small dose of know-how, and a little elbow grease, you can trim them yourself and, keep your outdoor investment growing beautifully for many years.

References:

Guimond, C. M., Lang, G. A., & Andrews, P. K. (1998). Timing and Severity of Summer Pruning Affects Flower Initiation and Shoot Regrowth in Sweet Cherry.  HortScience, 33(4), 647–649.

Douglas, S. (2001, August). Pruning: An introduction to why, how, and when. CT.gov – Connecticut’s Official State Website. https://portal.ct.gov/CAES/Plant-Science-Day/2001/Pruning

How to prune a cherry tree – and when to prune it

(Image credit: Getty Images / Jacky Parker)

Cherry trees make a lovely addition to any garden, but you need to know how to prune a cherry tree to keep it healthy and a good shape. 

With their colorful foliage in fall, pretty spring blossom and some bearing delicious fruits, cherries offer both ornamental and productive appeal in a garden. You can also find compact and dwarf cherry trees suitable for containers – perfect for kitchen garden ideas.

Alongside those that are just grown for their beautiful blossom, there are both sweet cherry varieties – producing delicious, plump cherries  that can be eaten direct from the tree – and sour cherry trees, with fruits more suited to use in cooking, baking or preserves.  

The pruning method you adopt will differ depending on the variety you have, and whether your cherry is grown as an open centred bush, trained against a wall or trellis in a fan or espalier, or a weeping variety.

(Image credit: Getty Images / Shobeir Ansari)

How to prune a cherry tree – tips for beginners

'The goal when pruning cherry trees is to open up the center of the tree to allow sunlight and air to penetrate the branches and air to flow through,' explains Nikki McAteer of My Perfect Plants family-owned plant nursery in North Florida.

'The more sunlight the tree's inside branches receive, the more it will flower and then more fruit will be produced,' she continues.

Annually pruning cherry trees helps maintain a healthy balance of older fruiting wood and younger branches, and will keep the trees more compact, making it easier to pick the fruit. 

Maintaining a clear flow of air through the cherry tree will also help to protect the tree from diseases.  

'Reduce the risk of infections by disinfecting any tools with alcohol or dilute bleach before starting to prune,' explains Dan Neuteboom at Real English Fruit .

To make sure you have the right tools for pruning a cherry tree, you will need:

(Image credit: Getty Images / Igor Stevanovic)

When should a cherry tree be pruned?

When should a cherry tree be pruned?

Opinion is a little divided and there are those that prefer to prune cherry trees in winter, others are spring pruners and some are summer pruners. 

Summer pruning a cherry tree

Those who prune a cherry tree in late summer believe this is the best way to avoid the tree developing disease. In addition, it encourages slower growth of the tree.  

'Great candidates for spring or summer pruning include cherry trees, which, if left alone, can grow up to three stories tall,' explains Susan Poizner of Orchard People , who provide education and consulting on fruit tree care. 

Winter pruning a cherry tree

If you live in a cold climate, pruning cherry trees in late winter, when the tree is dormant, with no leaves or fruit, will encourage more rapid growth. 

It is also easier to see the structure of the tree in winter, to help determine which branches to prune.

It is best to avoid pruning cherry trees in early winter as the tree will not have the stored energy to heal wounds caused by pruning.

(Image credit: Getty Images / Jacky Parker)

Spring pruning a cherry tree

Pruning in spring, after the trees buds have opened and leaves started to develop, is a way to identify and remove any unhealthy branches and encourage a desired branch structure. The downside is that is will not encourage as much growth in the cherry tree.

'The best time to prune fruiting cherry trees is in late summer after the tree has gone through its fruiting period,' says Nikki McAteer.

'Most other cherries can be pruned in late winter during dormancy, but with fruiting cherries, you don't want to risk cutting off the blooms that produce the sweet fruit in spring,' she adds.

(Image credit: Getty Images / Richard Newstead)

Pruning free-standing cherry trees

The method for pruning a cherry tree will depend on the age of the tree. 

For young cherry trees:

(Image credit: Getty Images / Jacky Parker)

How do I prune an old cherry tree?

Overall, sweet cherry trees require only light pruning once established. To prune a cherry tree once established:

'During dormancy, in winter, the deciduous cherries will be leafless and you will have the best view of the branch structure. Additionally, you can prune back any suckers at the base of the tree. These will never produce viable fruit,' says Nikki McAteer.

If you have an established sour or acid cherry tree, however, it will need much heavier pruning that a sweet cherry, as the fruit is mainly produced on the previous year's growth.

If you have an established acid cherry tree, as well as removing dead, damaged or diseased branches, as above:

(Image credit: Getty Images / Monty Rakusen)

Pruning dwarf cherry trees

For pruning dwarf cherry trees, you can use the same method as other free-standing cherry trees, above.

How to prune weeping cherry trees

Using sharp pruners, remove suckers coming out of the base of weeping cherry trees. 'Remove suckers at any time of year,' advise the experts at Bower & Branch .

Prune out dead or dying branches back to live wood in winter – by scratching the wood to see where the live green wood begins.

On grafted trees, prune off any branches coming out from below the swelling near the top of the trunk as these won't 'weep' and will spoil the shape of the tree.

Trim the weeping branches to fall at least six inches from the ground and also prune more upright growing branches.

'Don't, however, remove more than 25 per cent of the canopy at one time when pruning a weeping cherry tree,' add the Bower & Branch experts.

(Image credit: Getty Images / Leonid Eremeychuk )

Should cherry trees be pruned every year?

Cherry trees should be pruned every year to maintain their shape and encourage healthy growth. 

Pruning cherry trees will also result in a better crop of fruit, as removing branches will increase the exposure to sunlight of the remaining shoots.

'In general, when pruning cherry trees, try to make as few cuts as possible, removing a few complete branches in order to give the canopy an open structure,' says Dan Neuteboom.

Rachel is senior content editor, and writes and commissions gardening content for homesandgardens.com, Homes & Gardens magazine, and its sister titles Period Living Magazine and Country Homes & Interiors. She has written for lifestyle magazines for many years, with a particular focus on gardening, historic houses and arts and crafts, but started out her journalism career in BBC radio, where she enjoyed reporting on and writing programme scripts for all manner of stories. Rachel then moved into regional lifestyle magazines, where the topics she wrote about, and people she interviewed, were as varied and eclectic as they were on radio. Always harboring a passion for homes and gardens, she jumped at the opportunity to work on The English Home and The English Garden magazines for a number of years, before joining the Period Living team, then the wider Homes & Gardens team, specializing in gardens.

how to prune correctly, scheme of crown formation of old and young trees

Cherry pruning is needed not only to form a beautiful crown. The main purpose of this procedure is to increase productivity. Unfortunately, not every gardener can boast of a good knowledge of pruning principles. In order for the cherry to grow more actively and delight its owners with ripe and large berries, you need to adhere to certain (not at all complicated) rules.

Contents

Should cherries be trimmed at all?

Many novice gardeners ask themselves the question: do you need to prune cherries at all? Of course, it is necessary. This tree boasts very fast growth and branching, so if it is not pruned, the crown will tangle very quickly, the central branches will no longer receive enough light and air, and fruiting will deteriorate or stop altogether.

Regular pruning of a plant will have a positive effect on it:

General principles of trimming

The entire trimming process can be roughly divided into two steps:

When pruning cherries, thinning is most often used. This is due to the fact that her buds are located closer to the ends of the branches, so shortening will be less effective in improving fruiting.

To learn how to prune cherries correctly, you also need to be able to identify the type of branch:

Cutting methods

When pruning cherries, the following cuts are most often used:

The diagram clearly shows how a particular cut is made

Many gardeners know that most plants should be cut with preparations such as ground coal or garden pitch to protect the branch from infections and improve healing, but on cherry this rule does not apply. Processing cut branches of a cherry tree or bush will lead to difficulty in recovery.

When to prune cherries

Cherries (of any variety and type) are pruned every year. A fresh seedling, planted in March-April before the buds swell, is pruned immediately after planting to form a crown.

Any tree or shrub is pruned in early spring, before the buds swell. At this time, active sap flow has not yet begun, and the plant will tolerate the removal and shortening of branches well. If you did not have time to cut the cherry in March, you should not cut the branches after the swelling of the buds - there is a high probability that they will dry out to the very base.

Cherry pruning should be carried out before bud break

In summer, after fruiting, only mature, well-developed trees can be pruned. Autumn pruning is, as a rule, sanitary in nature - before winter, weak, drying, diseased branches are removed from cherries in order to facilitate wintering for the plant.

This sanitary pruning can be carried out in any month if necessary. If you notice a diseased or drying branch, remove it immediately. In autumn, it is worthwhile to carefully examine the tree for damaged or weak branches and cut them out, if any.

Crown formation

The best option for such a fruit tree is considered to be a sparsely-tiered crown. When shaping, they use the same methods as when trimming: shortening and thinning.

The formation of the crown is carried out only after planting the cherry in its permanent place. Therefore, if you dug a cherry for the winter, you need to cut it only after landing in the garden.

Skeletal branches of the first order are formed in the seedling immediately after planting in the spring. To do this, choose about 5 of the strongest branches, the lowest of which should be located at a distance of about 20–30 cm above the ground. All branches growing below this threshold are removed to the ring. For skeletal branches, those that grow at an angle of 40-50 degrees from the trunk are best suited. Shoots growing at sharper angles may break off under the weight of the berries. Choose branches that grow at the same distance from each other and are located along the entire diameter of the trunk.

The formation of skeletal branches after planting is an important stage in the care of the seedling

In the second year, branches of the second order are formed. To do this, remove the shoots growing on the upper side of the skeletal branches. It is also necessary to cut into a ring all the shoots that have grown from the trunk in a year. The central conductor (or, as it is also called, the leader) is cut in such a way that it is 25–30 cm higher than the uppermost tier of branches, no more.

When forming the crown of the seedling, branches growing inside the crown, weak twigs and small shoots on the lower part of the trunk are removed

Pruning features

Of course, pruning of different types of cherries differs from each other. Moreover, the same tree at different periods of its life also needs to be cut in its own way.

Tree cherry

For the gardener, the bouquet twigs and annual shoots of the tree cherry are of the greatest interest - it is on them that most of the berries are formed. The main operation is crown thinning to stimulate an increase in the number of fruitful areas.

Tree cherries are distinguished by their large size and high stems

When pruning tree cherries, the following procedures are carried out:

Bush cherries

A feature of bush cherries is fruiting on annual shoots. Accordingly, when pruning this cherry, special attention should be paid to their constant active development.

Shrub cherries have a low trunk and compact size

When pruning bush cherries, follow these guidelines:

Young tree

When the seedling is established in its permanent place, it is pruned to form the correct crown. For this, only skeletal branches are left, and the rest are cut into a ring, leaving no hemp. At the same time, the rings are treated, contrary to the rule, with garden pitch.

The young cherry tree is pruned mainly to shape the crown

The following year, the biennial tree is protected from excessive thickening of the crown. To do this, remove the branches growing inside the crown. In the summer, you can still remove the green shoots growing on the trunk until they have time to get stronger. If they were not removed during the summer months, then these lignified branches are removed only the next year, in the spring.

In the future, new skeletal branches are formed near the tree, choosing them from among the strongest on the trunk, so that their number gradually increases to 13–15.

Rejuvenation of old cherries

Rejuvenation pruning of tree-like cherries is carried out when the bases of the skeletal branches are bare, and the annual growth becomes large and amounts to more than 10-15 cm. It is necessary to shorten the branches by a four-year-old wood. If the entire branch or its tip is bare, then they rejuvenate to the side branch of an older - five- or six-year-old - wood.

Bush cherries are rejuvenated when the branches are significantly exposed and growth is weakened. Branches are pruned to strong lateral branches grown on three-year-old wood.

Rejuvenation of an old tree should be carried out systematically. If the old cherry tree is already heavily neglected, then such pruning is carried out systematically for several years so as not to injure the plant too much. Rejuvenation is carried out along with the planned spring pruning.

The principles of rejuvenating pruning of old trees are quite simple:

With regular pruning of old cherries, their age becomes less noticeable - they continue to bear abundantly. It is produced when the cherry reaches a height of 3-4 meters. Thus, the growth of the plant is limited. In this case, the conductor is transferred to a strong side branch.

The top of the cherry tree is also cut off when the conductor is more than 30 cm higher than the top skeletal branches.

You can easily see strong skeletal branches in this cherry
Young cherry after pruning gets a beautiful crown shape
Thanks to pruning, cherry blossoms do not prevent small branches from accessing light and air.

Proper yearly pruning of cherries is not as difficult as it might seem at first glance. Give the plant your care and time, and it will thank you with ripe berries and beautiful foliage.