Falling fruit-trees
Our favourite plum tree split into three this week. It seems that modern fruit-trees produce so much that they require human support and pruning in order to remain stable, and unless this conducted regularly they can produce so much fruit they'll just fall to pieces. Ours did exactly that.
Some time was spent with Jacinta, myself, and our helpful neighbours in hacking off large branches to reduce the weight, and then pushing the three parts of the tree back together, putting in supports, and binding the trunk. We now have probably only half the tree that we used to have, and a much greater chance of infection or future difficulties.
This is a real shame, as it's our favourite plum tree that normally allows me to subsist off nothing but fruit during the summer months. I suspect that come winter we'll be taking a more attractive approach to our pruning schedule.
