How Do You Prune a Fruit Tree to an Open-Centre or Goblet Form?

The open-centre or goblet form is the most widely used shape for freestanding bush fruit trees in temperate gardens. It consists of three to five main scaffold branches arranged evenly around a short trunk, with the centre of the tree kept clear of branches. This open bowl allows sunlight to reach every part of the canopy, improving fruit colour, ripening, and disease resistance. It also keeps the tree to a manageable height and makes picking easier than a tall central-leader tree.

Which Trees Suit the Open-Centre Form

Open-centre training works best for apple, pear, plum, and cherry on semi-dwarfing or semi-vigorous rootstocks, and for gooseberry. It is not ideal for very vigorous varieties on standard rootstocks — these are better trained to a half-standard or standard where the extra height is an advantage rather than a problem. Pears can also be trained this way but naturally want to grow upright; you will need to use branch spreaders or tie-down strings to maintain wide branch angles in the early years.

Creating the Goblet in Years One and Two

Start with a maiden whip and cut it back in the first winter to about 75 cm from the ground. Three to five buds below the cut will produce the first structural shoots. When these have grown to 20–30 cm in summer, remove any that are growing too upright or pointing inward. Tie the remaining shoots outward at 45 degrees using string and short stakes. In the second winter, cut each of these shoots back by half to a bud on the upper side of the shoot, which will direct the next year's growth further outward and upward in the goblet shape.

Maintaining the Open Centre

The most important annual task for an open-centre tree is preventing branches from growing into the central space. Each winter, remove any shoot or branch that is pointing inward toward the centre. Watersprouts — vigorous upright shoots from the main framework — are the main culprits and should be removed at their base rather than shortened: shortening them just produces more vigorous regrowth in the same spot. Looking up into the tree from below, you should be able to see the sky clearly through the framework without significant obstruction.

Balancing Vigour Across the Framework

The branches of an open-centre tree will not all grow at the same rate. Upright branches are always more vigorous than those at a wider angle. If one branch is significantly larger than the others and threatening to dominate the tree, prune it harder than the weaker branches — the opposite of what instinct might suggest. Hard pruning stimulates more growth, so the dominant branch needs more cutting back, not less. The weakest branches should be pruned lightly or left unpruned to allow them to strengthen.