First pruning - Atemoya

[Dirt Rich]

Hello everybody, I am brand new to the forum and this is my first post. I have been a mango geek for 20 plus years and somehow I am late to the party on annonas and atemoyas. I bought a Geffner and a Lisa atemoya tree. They are both healthy looking trees in 7g pots. They are both about 4' tall and have not branched out yet. I have two questions:

1. Where should the first prune be to encourage the lateral branch growth? (Height)

2. Since it is late December, should I wait until Spring when the trees will start a more vigorous growth cycle?

Feel free to let me know if there are any other thoughts or tips that you might have for a first time Annona/atemoya grower. I look forward to growing many more. Thanks!!

[johnb51]

Include Dream and Hillary White in your collection

[Galatians522]

I would wait to prune until closer to bud break (February around here but they may leaf out sooner down there). Make your first cut about 24" above the dirt. You want the tree to develop a wide "V" with two branches about 16" long. Then each of those will make a wide "V" about 20" long. And the next set 24" long, etc. If your tree is growing strong you may get to that point by this time next year.

[Orkine]

Do you intend to plant them in the ground or keep them in the 7 g pot?  Will you up-pot as they grow?
This will affect the height of your initial (heading) cut.

This guide is for Cherimoya, but some of the principles transfer.  https://ucanr.edu/sites/default/files/2024-06/398851.pdf

For Atemoya common recommendation is to shape like an open goblet.  In this shape, you end up with a wide plant with several upright leaders rather than one central leader.  Cherimoya is often pruned to have a modified central leader prioritizing carrying heavy fruit without splitting the trunk.

If the trees are planted in the ground, 30 inches is a reasonable height for the first cut (often you will see recommendations for 24 to 30 inches)  If they will be in a pot, you may want to remove 6 inches and target 18 to 24 inches.

[MasOlas]

Book marked

[Dirt Rich]

Thank you Orkine and Galatians522!! This is great info. At the very least, these two will be up potted asap. Ideally, they will go into the ground if I can settle on the right spot for each, taking sunlight, soil conditions, cold protection into consideration. I will be buying other annonas down the road, so inevitably I will have to put a few in large pots. I guess that poses another question of "Which varieties do better in large pots?"

[brian]

I have a Geffner fruiting well in a 25gal pot for years.

[Orkine]

Book marked

The full Cherimoya book is here https://ucanr.edu/county/cooperative-extension-ventura-county/cherimoya-manual
The pruning chapter (chapter 7) was the link I shared earlier.

[Orkine]

I had a PPC (Phet Pac Chung) that performed well in a 25‑gallon pot. I suspect both the tree and the fruit would have grown larger if it had been planted in the ground; over time the roots escaped the pot and the fruit size increased, although that may simply have been due to the tree maturing.
I later planted a couple of mangoes and a giant passionfruit vine nearby, and their shade has caused the PPC to decline, but I plan to take scions and graft them onto an in‑ground tree next spring.

[Galatians522]

My description was for open goblet/open vase as is the practice in Australia. I did not know that they pruned cherimoya to a modified central leader in California.

[brian]

I had a PPC (Phet Pac Chung) that performed well in a 25‑gallon pot. I suspect both the tree and the fruit would have grown larger if it had been planted in the ground; ...

I do notice that my atemoya-in-a-container produces fruits much smaller than the typical atemoya fruits I see pictures of.  It has only been fruiting for a couple years, though, and it produces more and slightly larger fruit each yet.