I usually do a walk through during the winter on weekends only. We just got rid of a ton of snow with warmer temps and a lot of rain. I found some leftover black knot on one mirabelle, a little rabbit damage on one Tomcot, and a few broken branches on a peach tree. All in all it looks good. I have quite a few fruiting spurs and buds this year. Spring should look pretty. Just hoping for a continued mild winter (I doubt it). The peaches are loaded with buds this year, just like last year, as are my plums and cherry. My Enterprise had a few spots of canker, which will be pruned next month. Cannot wait to spray and prune next month! The orchard should be looking good for the sale of my house!
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Good to hear Mrsg. Hopefully all those buds survive winter and get pollinated well. My peach, nectarine, and pluots seem to have a lot of fruiting wood. Cherries and pears look okay. Apple on the other hand are frustrating me. I must’ve failed at pruning properly because they are the slowest fruiting trees I’ve planted. I don’t really see hardly any fruiting buds on my 3rd leaf apple trees. And it’s unfortunately what I’ve planted the most of.
I love finding fruiting buds in winter. It makes me think about the coming spring and the fruit I might get. My apricots got frozen out last year but they are absolutely loaded with buds this year since they didn’t have to bear a crop.
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Mrs. G.,
A few dead branches of my neighbor’s dead tree fell on my pear trees. That was not a pleasant sight.
The tree that has most flower buds is Shiro as usual. Look like my Gold Rush and E plums have fruit buds for the first time. That is exciting.
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mrsg do you always prune in February in RI? Isn’t it early? Just wondering when I should prune…
I don’t think its early at all. Every tree is still dormant. Have pruned in Feb. for over 10 years. This is my last year for pruning. Selling the house!
So I took a walk around my garden to look for fruit buds too. But I’m not sure what they look like . Snapped a few pics. First two are of the apple tree that I planted last summer. Maybe too early to be looking for fruit buds. But what can I say I’m an optimist 
The last two pics are of my peach tree. I’m sure those are fruit buds as it had fruit last year. Mrsg I hope you don’t mind me using your thread for this since it’s related.
Actually first pic is peach and last two Apple.
Nope don’t mind at all, but it looks like your first picture is your peach tree. If you look carefully at that picture you will see one two-pronged bud (lobed) if it had three lobes it would be a fruiting bud. Peaches seem to have buds, apples plums and pears have spurs. Google peach bud (flowering fruit buds, and fruiting spurs). You know exactly what to look for! Takes a few years.