However, this level of maintenance also results in higher labor costs. Pruning results in an increase in the amount of marketable fruit, increases the percentage of highly marketable fruit (#1 fruit), reduces the risk of certain diseases, and improves the ease of harvest. Regular pruning of leaves and fruit initials helps maintain the proper balance between fruit load and vegetative growth.
More leaves can support more fruit, but more leaves also reduce air movement and light penetration, which can lead to more foliar disease and a delay in fruit maturation. 3 The number and size of fruit that a plant produces is affected by the number of leaves on the plant. However, multi-stem plants tend to produce more fruit per plant. Single-stem plants tend to flower more quickly, produce harvestable fruit earlier, and produce heavier fruit than do multi-stem plants. Pruning the main stems, laterals, fruit initials, and leaves impacts plant growth and the microclimate in the canopy.
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