Winter fruit tree care: prune, plant and spray
Winter fruit tree care for June to August: planting bare-rooted trees, winter pruning, leaf curl and dormant oil sprays, frost protection and tool care.
Winter (June to August in southern Australia) looks quiet, with bare branches across the orchard, but it is one of the most important times of year. Deciduous trees are dormant, which makes it the season for planting, pruning and prevention.
Plant bare-rooted trees
Bare-rooted deciduous fruit trees are cheaper, easier to handle and establish quickly when planted in winter. Plant them as soon as you can after you collect them, and soak the roots for an hour or two first. If you can't plant straight away, heel them into a trench of moist soil to keep the roots from drying out. See how to plant a fruit tree, step by step.
Winter pruning
- Prune apples, pears, peaches, nectarines, plums, figs and grapes while they are dormant.
- Remove dead, damaged and diseased wood first, then crossing branches, then shape.
- Choose dry days to prune, and prune healthy trees before any diseased ones.
- Leave apricots and cherries until late summer; winter cuts invite disease in these trees.
Prevention sprays
Winter is when you get ahead of spring diseases.
- Peach leaf curl: spray peaches and nectarines with copper at bud swell in late winter, just as buds begin to fatten and before they show colour. It is the only time the spray works.
- Scale and mites: a dormant oil spray on deciduous trees smothers overwintering pests.
Always follow the label, spray on a still, dry day and check the forecast for rain.
Citrus in winter
Citrus are evergreen and many varieties ripen through winter. Pick fruit as it is ready, protect young trees from frost with frost cloth, and keep watering lightly in dry spells. Hold off on feeding until late winter or early spring.
Check the gear
Winter is a good time to sharpen and clean secateurs and saws, repair nets, fix irrigation lines and drippers, and replace tree guards and ties that are cutting into trunks.
Winter checklist
- Plant bare-rooted deciduous trees
- Winter prune deciduous fruit (not apricots or cherries)
- Copper spray for leaf curl at bud swell
- Dormant oil for scale and mites
- Protect young citrus from frost
- Repair tools, nets and irrigation
- Late winter: give the first feed of the year as buds begin to move
Add new trees as you plant them and note each spray with its date. Next winter you will know exactly when you did what. Trees n Bees can turn a care suggestion, like the leaf curl spray at bud swell, into a job for someone on your team, and a spray window alert tells you the evening before when tomorrow looks calm and dry.