How are trees pruned?

NARRATOR: For those gardeners who forgot to cut their trees in autumn, they have no choice but to do it in winter. But with snow still on the branches and the fields looking lifeless, this is no time to be gardening, surely? Rubbish, says head gardener Josef Weimar.

JOSEF WEIMAR: "Tree cutting in winter really encourages the shoots to grow. It helps to ensure that the trees develop and grow. That's why the winter is the right time to prune your trees."

NARRATOR: It sounds simple and straightforward enough, but the first cut is always the trickiest. Take this young tree with just a few branches. Where should Josef make the first cut?

WEIMAR: "The first thing to do is to identify the basic scaffolding that will support the tree's development for the next three hundred years. Next, you try to identify the branches where the fruit itself will grow, because these too have to be cut. So, now I've cut the four supporting branches, it's time to cut the central branches. We make a cut here and leave the top buds alone, but break off all the buds and shoots below. Do you see what I'm doing? This is important, because I'm making sure that these branches, which run almost vertically, don't develop. We want the fruit-bearing branches to stretch away horizontally from the tree."

NARRATOR: This orchard isn't only home to young trees. There are also much older and more mature trees growing here, some of which have been here for a decade or longer.

WEIMAR: "With this 12-year-old tree, I'm always trying to get the right balance between the fruit-bearing and the supporting branches."

NARRATOR: Whether it's a cherry, apple, peach or pear tree, the basic rules of tree surgery remain the same. Meanwhile, it's time for Josef to get in among the canopy of this 12-year old. And no branch is too thick to escape his secateurs.

WEIMAR: "This allows the light, air and sun to get to the fruit and encourage it to grow."

NARRATOR: The oldest tree in this orchard is this proud 80-year-old apple tree. To those gardeners brave enough to make it up here, it's clear that a bit of a tidy up is necessary. The middle of the tree has grown lots of branches that leave some of the lower branches in shade. Josef's secateurs will need to perform some delicate surgery up in the treetop to let the air and light circulate freely. But how much should he cut? Well, it's said that a crow should be able to fly through a tree without difficulty. That's the rule of thumb that every gardener should bear in mind. Up here, each and every cut should allow more light in, encourage more fruit to grow and increase the tree's lifespan.