Greetings,

Two years ago, I planted several varieties of pear and apple trees in a
small orchard on my property, in central Va.

This year, several of the pears and apples have grown to heights of 10
to 12' tall and put on a good show of blooms, which have subsequently
turned into all manner of pears and apples.

My problem is this : the fruit is weighing down the branches
substantially. I have read that I should prune off the fruit to one
every 4 to 6 inches. But, as I had not expected fruit this year anyway,
I am considering just removing all of the fruit (I am not certain that
some of the branches could hold even one FULL grown apple or pear.)

But, before I take any drastic measures, I thought I would post to this
group to see if any helpful advice might be available.

Thanks in advance for your time,

jones