Last year I made a ladder to support the branches of a fig and a pear tree, so that the branches would not break under the weight of the fruit.
And this year I have to make a support for the branches of an apricot tree.
It is partly my fault, when I pruned the tree I did not want to remove many fruit buds. I was afraid of frost because last year we were left without a single apricot. The frost destroyed everything in bloom. So, taking that into account, I did not remove the fruit buds.
This apricot tree has certainly "gone wild" a little, and it is difficult to bring it back into a shape that meets the rules of pruning. And I do not want to make large cuts because that can harm it. So now I am forced to support a few branches and help them with the weight.
For this purpose I used (recycled) old used battens and a few nails.
For each bracket I measured how long it needed to be, cut it with a hand saw and added another batten on top of the batten, making a kind of fork.
I made four branches and supported the more critical branches. I may need more, I'll have to monitor the condition of the apricots as they grow.I have removed and am removing every overly damaged , stunted or bad apricot . But I am sorry to remove healthy apricots .
Since I had already worked with slats, I made five smaller slats for the orchard.I stuck them in the ground and raised the main hose from the irrigation system. The grass has grown in the orchard and the neighbor is coming tomorrow to mow the grass with a trimmer.
In order not to damage the hose and not to bother him, I decided to raise it. I removed the individual hoses of the drip system and removed them from the orchard. I know that this is not the best solution for watering and instead of this trick with drips, it is better to have a more decorative hose with drippers that goes to the orchard. And it is attached to the fruit trees themselves. That is all I have at the moment, so I have to make do.
Thanks for reading.
Until next time.
Stay healthy.
Markone85.