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Fruit Tree Cultivation Operations (Pruning, Pollination, and Fruit Thinning)

Agriculture · 農業 · Written by Tokutei Pass based on the official study texts; not copied verbatim.

Deciduous vs. Evergreen Fruit Trees and Bearing Habits

Fruit trees are classified into "deciduous fruit trees", which shed their leaves in autumn/winter and enter dormancy, and "evergreen fruit trees", which retain green leaves year-round. Deciduous species include apples, Japanese pears, peaches, grapes, persimmons, and chestnuts; evergreens include satsuma mandarins, lemons, and loquats.

Fruit trees are usually propagated by grafting (tsugiki), and their bearing habits vary by species. Some bear fruit on current-season shoots growing from last year's mother branches (grapes, persimmons, mandarins), while others flower and fruit directly on one-year-old or older branches (peaches, pears, apples).

For deciduous fruit trees to break winter dormancy and bud and flower normally in spring, they must be exposed to a required cumulative duration of chilling temperatures (such as below 7℃) during winter.

Key points


  • Deciduous fruit trees include apples, pears, peaches, grapes, and persimmons; evergreens include satsuma mandarins and loquats.

  • Fruit tree nursery stock is commonly produced by "grafting (tsugiki)", joining a scion onto a rootstock.

  • Deciduous fruit trees require a certain period of winter chilling temperatures to break dormancy.
WordMeaning
deciduous fruit trees / evergreen fruit trees
grafting (rootstock / scion)
mother branch / fruiting branch
dormancy

Tree Training, Pruning, Trellis Systems, and Tying

Shaping fruit trees by cutting branches is called "training and pruning (seishi / sentei)". It allows sunlight and air to penetrate inside the canopy, improving fruit quality, reducing pests and diseases, and making management and harvesting easier.

During "winter pruning" in the dormant season, remove vigorous upright "water sprouts (tochoushi)", crossing branches, inward-growing branches, dead wood, and pest- or disease-damaged limbs.

Japanese pears, grapes, and kiwifruit are commonly grown on overhead wire "flat trellises (tanajitate)", spreading and tying branches horizontally to prevent typhoon wind damage and facilitate orchard work.

Tree Training, Pruning, Trellis Systems, and Tying

Key points


  • Pruning improves sunlight penetration and airflow, enhancing fruit quality and work efficiency.

  • Prioritize removing water sprouts, crossing branches, inward-growing shoots, and diseased limbs.

  • Japanese pears, grapes, and kiwifruit are widely grown using overhead flat trellis systems (tanajitate).
WordMeaning
tree training / pruning
water sprout (vigorous upright shoot)
crossing branch / inward-growing branch
overhead trellis training

Artificial Pollination and Bud, Flower, & Fruit Thinning

Many cultivars of apples, Japanese pears, and sweet cherries exhibit "self-incompatibility (jika fuwagousei)", meaning they cannot set fruit with their own pollen. Therefore, growers interplant compatible pollinizer varieties or perform hand "artificial pollination (jinkou jufun)".

Leaving all blossoms and young fruits on the tree disperses nutrients, resulting in small fruit and exhausting the tree so it fails to bear the next year ("alternate bearing / kakunen kekka"). Prevent this by removing excess buds, flowers, and young fruit ("thinning: tekirai, tekika").

When thinning apples, keep the vigorous central "king fruit (chuushinka)" of each cluster and remove surrounding lateral fruits ("sokka") as well as blemished or misshapen ones. To produce seedless grapes, clusters are treated with "gibberellin".

Artificial Pollination and Bud, Flower, & Fruit Thinning

Key points


  • Apples and Japanese pears are self-incompatible and require cross-pollination with another cultivar.

  • Bud, flower, and fruit thinning increases fruit size and prevents alternate bearing (kakunen kekka).

  • When thinning apples, retain the central king fruit (chuushinka) and remove the lateral fruits (sokka).
WordMeaning
self-incompatibility / artificial pollination
bud thinning / flower thinning / fruit thinning
alternate (biennial) bearing
central (king) fruit / lateral fruit

Fruit Bagging, Coloration Management, Harvesting, and Storage

For apples, peaches, pears, and grapes, paper bags are placed over young fruits after thinning ("fruit bagging / fukurokake"). Bagging protects fruit from pests and diseases, prevents limb-rub scratches and skin russeting, and improves appearance.

To promote even red coloration in apples and peaches before harvest, growers remove the bags ("debagging / jotai"), pluck leaves shading the fruit ("leaf plucking / hatsumi"), gently rotate the fruit toward the sun ("fruit turning / tamamawashi"), and lay "reflective sheets" on the orchard floor.

In satsuma mandarin cultivation, white breathable "mulch sheets" are spread over the ground to block rainwater and reflect light upward, producing high-sugar fruit. Judge harvest maturity using skin color charts, sugar content (Brix), acidity, and days after flowering, and pick carefully to avoid bruising.

Key points


  • Fruit bagging protects against pests, diseases, scratches, and russeting while improving appearance.

  • Coloration practices for apples include debagging, leaf plucking, fruit turning, and laying reflective sheets.

  • Determine harvest timing using skin color charts, sugar content (Brix), acidity, and days after full bloom.
WordMeaning
fruit bagging / debagging
leaf plucking / fruit turning
reflective sheet
sugar content (Brix) / color chart

Fruit Tree Cultivation

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