Stripping fruit tree leaves in the fall?

Do others strip their fruit trees of leaves in the fall to promote earlier hibernation?

My winter climate is very mild and some varieties of apple trees will hold their leaves through December. Almost all of my fruit trees still have their leaves and we’re almost into November now. I have probably 20+ trees I’m looking to transplant to ground in November. Would it be a good idea to strip these fruit trees of leaves now to promote earlier hibernation before transplanting?

I’ve also been thinking of stripping my plum/cot/pluot varieties to promote earlier hibernation. This would be to hopefully give me a larger window for scion wood collection. Some of my early varieties are already seeing bud swell by January, so this doesn’t give much of a window for collection. I don’t like creating wounds on my stone fruit trees during rainy weather because of disease issues, so finding a dry spell during our wet winters is sometimes hard to time well. A larger scion wood collection window would hopefully make it safer and ensure the trees were completely dormant by December.

Are there any negatives to doing this now?

Any feedback you could provide would be greatly appreciated.

1 Like

If you have green leaves on your trees when transplanting, some moisture loss through transpiration will occur and possibly cause water stress.

As for as earlier hibernation goes, I let Mother Nature drop the leaves on her schedule.

2 Likes

My thought is it probably won’t make much difference in anything. But I doubt that it would do much harm unless done too early. I’d wait until the end of November. That’s when actual winter arrives in warm winter climates. By then the leaves aren’t worth much anyhow. The tree won’t miss the thatm.

On the transplants the leaves won’t hurt them. It’s so mild that a bit of watering if it doesn’t rain and they’ll be fine.

I don’t think stripping leaves now will make them more dormant in December.

3 Likes

Damn, I thought I’d read someone suggest that it promoted earlier hibernation in an old post on the forum before.

Thanks for the feedback guys.

I could be wrong. And it may depend on the species and situation.

1 Like

Commerical nurseries in warm climates use chemical defoliation to be able to dig and store trees in the fall before cold or wet weather interferes with digging. One of the cautions on using the chemical is that natural formation of leaf scars has started to prevent disease entry.

2 Likes

I strip my apple trees but I think you’re way early for 9b.

2 Likes

For the apple trees, I was only thinking of stripping the trees I was planning on transplanting in November.

My stone fruit loses I’d say 70-80% of their leaves in September but only due to being so wind whipped all year and they finally succumb to it. So the remaining ones are scraggly (similar with apple but they cling better and mines in a more protected spot) and only a tiny bit of new growth post September for me. I have removed the remaining scraggled leaves in January in the past and will likely continue to do so. It’s only a handful of leaves anyhow but they seem to hold them forever. But as others said I don’t think it would be much use to remove them so early. Unless you’re getting low blooms every spring in which case it could be worth trying. If you’re getting good blooms/fruit set I wouldn’t worry about it. I mostly do it so I can not look at those eyesore leaves anymore, also a couple varieties on them likely needs more chill hours than I get. But so far blooms have been ample enough for me.

3 Likes

As mentioned above commercial nurseries induce leaf drop chemically, in France they do it also to be able to sell the trees during peak demand which is often earlier than natural leaf drop, which is getting later and later because of global warming. We are a small nursery and we do it manually, but I wait as late as possible, and do it in several passes. When you remove the leaves you can feel those that are “ready” to drop. I leave those that aren’t for the next pass, this is done over 2-3 weeks.

2 Likes

If you are only taking off the leaves that are ready to come off, in my opinion you really aren’t changing anything. The leaves that are loose, and I know exactly what you mean, have already formed an abscission layer. You could only change something if you take off the ones that aren’t ready.

1 Like

I don’t have any data to back this up, but my general feeling is that by taking off the leaves that are ready to come off, the remaining ones tend to get ready faster. Almost like sending a signal to the tree that it’s time to go dormant. Might be just an impression though.

4 Likes

I think that’s right, when mine get wind damage it seems like the induce dropping of the others. Likely the only reason I get good fruit set on an Elberta peach here. It was my first tree planted and I wouldn’t have made that choice if I was planting it today. Floriaprince or something would have been a better selection for here.

1 Like

Absissic acid?