Prune to an outward facing bud

Pruning is done in winter for many trees, particularly fruit trees, and the instructions frequently use the phrase “prune to an outward facing bud”.  I always feel that this is something of an oversimplification and it helps for gardeners to understand why this advice is given to help make the best decisions about where exactly to make those pruning cuts. Pruning to...

Buying & planting field-grown trees in winter

Winter is a great time plant new trees and hedges as long as the ground is not frozen.  An advantage of winter planting is that you can buy young field-grown trees and hedging plants more cheaply than pot-grown specimens.   As the name suggests field-grown trees are grown in open fields and lifted (dug up) just before delivery to you or...