When it comes to keeping your fruit trees alive, healthy, and ready to provide you with ample fruit year after you, summer maintenance is a must. This time of year brings about record high temperatures, bees buzzing about, and evening breezes. Most fruit trees love these conditions and put on new growth under the hot summer sun. Our Minneapolis area climate has some tough heat coming our way over the next several weeks, so here’s what you need to know.

However, summer can also mean harmful insects, diseases, and dieback. To prevent these problems, follow these 5 care tips:

1. Keep a Close Eye on Your Trees

Insect infestations can sneak up on you if you’re not vigilant. While you do not need to check your trees daily, be sure you spend some time now and then looking over your trees’ bark, branches, and leaves--especially the underside of leaves. 

Japanese beetles and other bugs can kill a tree in a matter of days. If you notice bugs--act quickly.
 

2. Re-Mulch Around the Base

As the weather heats up, it’s difficult for the soil to retain enough water to quench the thirst of most fruit trees. Adding a fresh layer of mulch can improve moisture retention while staving off weeds that can rob the soil of moisture and nutrients. We can help with this!
 

3. Now’s the Time to Fertilize

Your trees are growing and using all their energy reserves in doing so. Give your trees the best opportunity to grow with a bit of fertilizer. Just be sure you don’t put the fertilizer against the trunk or base of your tree (especially young trees). 
 

4. Lighten Your Trees’ Load

Most fruiting trees will put out more fruit than their branches can bear. This can lead to broken limbs, insect infestations, disease, and fruit that doesn’t grow to full size. The last thing you want is one of our summer storms to come through and break off branches indiscriminately. 

By removing limbs that grow downward, cross other limbs, or grow directly up from a branch (often called “water sprouts”), you are providing the remaining branches a healthy chance to grow and develop.
 

5. Quench Your Trees’ Thirst

Unless there’s a downpour, you will want to water your fruit trees at least once per week. Water them in the morning by allowing the water to fully saturate the soil surrounding the base of the tree. Water should reach about one to two feet into the ground to give your tree enough hydration to make it through until its next watering.

Keep Your Yard Looking Its Best This Summer with Healthy Fruit Trees.

Don’t let your fruit trees become victims of the summer heat and storms. If you’re unsure of which branches to trim, need assistance fertilizing, or mulching your landscaping, we’re here to help. Our goal is to help you keep your yard looking great all summer!  Give us a call today for a fruitful and fun summer.

Photo credit: Pexels.