The Best Time to Prune Orange Trees

Oranges in city landscape

Oranges are one of the most widely grown fruit crops in the world. Evergreen tropical climate natives, they do not tolerate cold. They are never completely dormant, but growth slows down in winter. With proper care, an orange tree can produce fruit for up to 50 years.

Pruning

Prune to revitalize older trees.

Orange trees are sold properly shaped and pruned to develop naturally, according to experts at Texas A&M AgriLife Extension. Pruning is only required to remove unwanted growth or revitalize an older tree. Experts do recommend removing branches 1 foot from the ground on young trees. Do not prune oranges as you would deciduous fruit trees like apples. There is no need to thin fruit or change the branch configuration, unless branches rub or cross.

Deadbrushing

Fruit does not need thinning.

Commercial growers use a process called deadbrushing. Deadbrushing is yearly maintenance to remove dead and crossing branches, water sprouts and shaded branches with no fruit-bearing extensions. This type of maintenance pruning produces as much or more fruit than severe yearly pruning.

Best Time to Prune

Use maintenance pruning.

Encourage new growth by pruning before your orange's spring growth begins. Prune the upper canopy to let light in. Heavily shaded wood will not produce fruit. Once old wood is cut out, the nutrients that would have supported it are used to produce new growth.

Pruning should be done after freezing temperatures are past. Use a freeze/frost map like the one provided by NOAA to determine safe pruning times. Be sure to prune before spring growth starts so that your orange can recover. Glenn Wright of the Arizona Cooperative Extension recommends necessary pruning in February through April.

References

• Univ. of Florida IFAS Extension: Your Florida Dooryard Citrus Guide, Pruning
• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: Home Fruit Production - Citrus
• Western Farm Press: Spring Not Necessarily Best Time to Prune Citrus
• Univ. of Purdue Horticulture: Fruits of Warm Climates
• University of Arizona Extension: Pruning Citrus

Resources

• United Nations Conference on Trade and Development: Citrus Fruit
• Sunkist: Citrus 101, How Citrus Trees Grow
• National Climactic Data Center, NOAA: Freeze/Frost Maps
• Greenfield Citrus Nursery: Growing Citrus