Pruning Plums

Over the last few years, I've noticed myself becoming more and more of a hermit. I seldom leave the house unless I have to. I go to work. I come home, and sit in front of the TV. I don't go out. I don't socialize. My own cousin lives right next door, and I rarely even go visit. I'm my daddy made over.

I was sitting in my office, trying to reconcile my bank accounts. The combination of my frustratingly slow budgeting program and my ancient computer was making for an excruciatingly slow experience.

As I leaned back in my chair to stretch my back, I just happened to glance out the window. I said to my self, "Self, it's a beautiful day. You should go do something outside."

So, I shut down the banking, grabbed my old rose trimmers from the days when I had roses, and headed out to the plum trees.

We've got 7 or 8 little plum trees out in the back yard.  They haven't borne fruit in years, but have always been covered in white blooms every spring.  Here lately, they are blooming less and less. 

Part of the problem is that we've let the honeysuckle grow up and nearly choke them out.  Yes, believe it or not, under all that mess is a plum tree. 

After a quick online search revealed that plum trees should be pruned in June, my mission today was to clear all the honeysuckle out.  I made a good start, too.  I got about half of the trees cleared of the pesky vines, but quickly realized that I would need to go buy some gardening gloves before doing the rest of them.

And some bigger clippers, too.  Some of those vines were nearly as thick as the tree branches.

Still, all of the trees showed some signs of life.  Come June, I'll try to get out and cut all the dead wood out and start trying to prune them correctly. 

Will they come back?  I don't know.  Will they ever bear fruit again?  That remains to be seen.

But they did get me out of the house today.

And that's a good thing.