Working with fruit trees

I hadn't set aside enough time to prune the trees this season.  I finally took some time in April to examine the branches, though.  Leaves had already started to appear on the branches, so I decided to wait until next year to prune them.  It needs to be done at the end of March, no later than the first week of April. 

However, we learned in WMMGA that we can widen the crotch angles and improve the structure (or scaffold) of the trees.  The time to do this is in April, and  it takes about 5-6 weeks to accomplish.  So, I purchased some Gorilla Glue, gathered some rocks from the back yard, and made some weights to use on the trees.  Only 2 of the 6 fruit trees seemed to need some help:  the plum tree and one of the pear trees.

 

 



I noticed that there is a lot of damage on the plum tree.  The base of the trunk has been gnawed at by either mice or voles, and the trunk and lower branches have cracked, rubbed bark.  I don't know if it's been caused by deer or the sun, but I will make sure to wrap my baby trees in November to protect them from winter injury and pests.

PJM Rhododendrons

A few weeks ago, when I was out pruning bushes and surveying the gardens, I thought my PJM rhododendron was sick.  I looked like this on April 3rd:

So, here it is, April 19 and it looks like this:

Overall, it looks healthy and has plenty of blooms.  One of the bushes only has blooms on the back, towards the house.  I wonder if the wind/cold was too much for it.  I'm not about to put burlap over it, though, each winter.  It looks good enough.  I think I fertilized the plant too late in the season, and the new growth suffered winter injury.  This year I know not to do that - not past mid July.