"Aspley Nursery" wrote in message
...
The pruning suggested is about right, but you will notice that the tree
has
multiple stems to make the canopy. Have heard from a pro. that pruning
about
a third of these each year an a three year cycle, can do a good job.

If you prune real hard the tree can fail to flower the next year but is
unlikely to die.

The bad skin is Anthracnose fungi. Spraying with Mancozeb is the cure, but
for a big tree is a hassle. Spray particularly when the tree is about to
flower. Hygiene the dead leaves under the tree to the tip regularly to
stop
reinfection, keep the tree dry when the flowers are on.

Read What Garden Pest & Disease is That by Judy McMaugh or the DPI
literature
Robert
A semi professional QLD

"len gardener" wrote in message
...
g'day miki,

no expert here so you still may want to consult a book on pruning the
local library will no doubt have something to guide you.

but this is all i have ever done:

prune after the new growth in about march.

prune to bring the height down and open up the middle of the tree.

pruning the other branches is then only as a tidy up and to open them
up a little.

after you prune there will be a lot of new growth snap off those that
are growing inwards or that will increase the canopy too much.

hope this helps a bit

len

snipped
--
happy gardening
'it works for me it could work for you,'

"in the end ya' gotta do what ya' gotta do" but consider others and the
environment
http://members.optusnet.com.au/~gardenlen1/
The NO in return addy is a spam trap.



Alternate between Copper and Mancozeb after flowering.

Cheers
Match
www.gorgecreekorchards.com.au