Pruners and When to Prune Apple Trees in West Virginia

The Felco F2 is the pruner other pruners get compared to. It’s Swiss-made at 9.25 inches, has an aluminum body and uses replaceable parts, so a worn blade or spring doesn’t mean buying a whole new tool. The discount is modest and it’s sold by Amazon, so this is a fair time to buy one if you’ve wanted it for a while, not a once-a-year steal.

The Okatsune 103 is the medium-size general purpose bypass pruner from a Japanese maker that orchard and vineyard folks trust. The medium size is a sensible fit for most hands. Of everything in this week’s list, it has the best mix of reputation and discount.

The Haus & Garten ClassicPRO is an 8.5-inch titanium-coated bypass pruner that ranks #8 in its category. It has one of the larger markdowns on a brand with a track record. It’s a good middle ground if the Felco is more than you want to spend on a few backyard trees.

The ARS HP-SE45 is a needle nose pruner, so it’s for precise work and not for limbs. It’s the tool for thinning fruit clusters next June, cutting suckers at the base, or getting into a crowded spur without nicking the bark. Bright orange is a plus when you set it down in tall grass under the tree.

The Craft911 pruner ranks #2 in its category, uses Japanese steel with a rust-resistant titanium coating and is rated to cut 3/4-inch wood. The listing pitches it for weak hands and arthritis, which counts for a lot when you’re making a hundred cuts on a cold March morning. It’s a marketplace brand, so expect it to wear out sooner than an Okatsune, but the price is hard to argue with.

The Decerk 8.5-inch shears hold the #1 bestseller spot in their category and are also rated for 3/4-inch branches. The discount is small, so you’re buying the popularity, not a bargain. Choose between this and the Craft911 based on which handle shape you like.

The EWPJDK set gives you three stainless steel pruning shears and has the biggest percentage drop this week. I’d be careful with the original price on a no-name 3-pack, but the sale price is still low. It’s a good pick for keeping one pair in the truck, one in the shed and one for a kid who wants to help.

The VOTREK is an anvil pruner rated for 3/4-inch cuts, and an anvil is the right choice for dead, dry wood that would bind a bypass blade. Use it to remove dead or broken apple limbs now, since that cleanup doesn’t have to wait for winter. The pile can go on a brush fire later, as long as you check the WV brush burning rules first, because fall fire season has restricted hours.

The Felco F322 is a 9.84-inch snip with a curved carbon steel blade, a rounded tip and a sap groove. That build suits fruit harvest and deadheading more than limb work. It’s sold by Amazon with almost no discount, so buy it because you want it, not because of the price.

The Fiskars 6-inch snips come as a 2-pack, with a non-stick, resin-resistant coating that keeps sap from gumming up the blades. They’re good for herbs, flowers and cutting back perennials before frost. The deal is time-limited and ends in about 40 hours.

The DEZEX set has 8 tools with ergonomic handles, a rust-resistant finish and a storage bag, and pruning is only one part of it. It’s a better fit for fall bed work, like getting garlic in the ground at the right depth, than for orchard work. It was added to the pool two days ago and ranks #37 in its category.