Summer is when fruit growing pays off, and it is also when it asks for steady, unglamorous care. The fruit that set in spring is swelling now, and it needs water, protection from birds and pests, and picking at the right moment — while the tree itself needs its fruit thinned where it is overloaded, its branches supported where they are bending, and its roots kept cool under mulch. A fruit tree neglected in summer will drop its fruit early, produce small, poor-flavoured fruit, or break a branch under the weight, while a tree given regular water and attention will reward you for months. This guide covers watering, thinning, netting, pest watch and harvesting for fruit trees and berries through summer. For local advice, check your local extension service.
Watering fruit in summer
Fruit needs steady moisture as it swells, and a dry spell in summer does more damage to the crop than a dry spell in spring, because the fruit is larger and has more to lose. Water deeply at the root zone, slowly, so the water soaks down rather than running off — a soaker hose or a slow-running hose left in place is ideal — and water in the morning so the tree is hydrated before the heat of the day. A mulch ring of compost or wood chips around the tree, kept clear of the trunk, holds moisture and keeps roots cool, and it is worth topping up before the hottest weeks.
Young trees in their first few years need watering far more often than established trees, because their roots are shallow and have not yet spread into the surrounding soil. A tree that drops its fruit early in summer is often a tree that is short of water, and a tree that produces small fruit is often one that was dry while the fruit was swelling. Berries need consistent moisture too, especially strawberries and raspberries, which have shallow roots and wilt quickly in heat. The watering calculator can help you work out how much water a tree or a berry bed needs.
Thinning, supporting and summer pruning
Thin fruit in early summer if you did not do it in late spring, removing the smallest and any damaged fruit so what remains has room to grow. On apples and pears, leave one fruit per cluster, spaced roughly a hand's width apart; on plums, leave fruit a few centimetres apart; on peaches, leave one fruit every fifteen centimetres or so. A thinned tree produces larger, better-flavoured fruit, breaks fewer branches, and is more likely to crop well again next year. If a branch is bending under the weight of fruit, thin it hardest and prop it with a forked stick padded with cloth.
Summer pruning of fruit trees is light: remove water shoots, dead or crossing wood, and any shoots growing straight up from branches, and shorten new growth on trained forms such as espaliers so light reaches the fruit. Do not carry out major structural pruning in summer. On summer-fruiting raspberries, cut the canes that have fruited down to the ground after harvest, and tie in the new green canes for next year. For crop detail, see growing apples, growing strawberries and growing raspberries, and our summer pruning guide.
Netting and bird protection
Birds are the main pest of summer fruit, and they arrive as soon as the fruit starts to colour. Netting draped over a simple frame is the reliable answer, and the frame matters: netting laid directly on the fruit lets birds peck through it, while netting on a frame keeps them away from the fruit entirely. Put the netting up as soon as the first fruit colours, and check it daily so birds and other wildlife do not become tangled. A fruit cage, built once and used every year, is the best investment a fruit gardener can make if birds are a regular problem.
Other summer pests include wasps, which are drawn to ripe and damaged fruit, and codling moth, whose grubs tunnel into apples. Remove fallen and damaged fruit promptly, because wasps are attracted to it and it carries disease, and pick fruit as soon as it is ripe rather than leaving it to overripen on the tree. Pheromone traps can help with codling moth, and the pest identifier helper can help you identify what you are seeing. Our summer pest control guide covers the wider pest picture.
Harvesting fruit in the heat
Pick fruit in the morning, when it is cool and firm, and handle it gently — fruit bruises easily in summer heat, and a bruised fruit will spoil quickly. Strawberries are ready when fully red all over, raspberries when they come away from the core with a gentle tug, blueberries when fully blue, and tree fruit when the background colour changes and the fruit comes away with a gentle lift and twist. Taste a fruit before you pick a whole basket, because colour alone can mislead, and pick into a shallow container rather than a deep bucket.
Pick regularly and promptly, because fruit left to overripen on the plant attracts wasps, birds and disease, and a plant picked often will keep producing. Bring the harvest indoors and out of the sun as soon as you can, and eat, freeze, cook or share it the same day where possible — summer fruit at its best is a same-day pleasure, and the glut is best dealt with by freezing, jam-making and sharing. Our summer harvesting guide covers picking and storing in detail, and the harvest date calculator can estimate when a crop should be ready.
Feeding and aftercare in summer
Fruit trees and bushes need little feeding in summer if they were mulched with compost in spring, and heavy feeding now pushes soft growth that aphids love. Strawberries benefit from a feed after they have finished fruiting, to help them build strength for next year, and container fruit such as blueberries in pots need regular light feeding because their compost is quickly exhausted. Blueberries need acidic soil, so feed them only with a fertiliser suited to acid-loving plants and avoid lime or wood ash near them.
After harvest, tidy the plants: remove runners from strawberries you want to keep for fruit, or peg down runners where you want new plants; cut out fruited raspberry canes; and clear fallen fruit from the ground, where it carries disease. Take notes on which varieties cropped well and which did not, which tree needed the most thinning, and where the first pest appeared — those notes are the basis of next year's decisions. For the spring routine, see our spring fruit care guide, and browse the guides hub for the full seasonal series.
Frequently asked questions
How often should I water fruit trees in summer?
Deeply at the root zone, slowly, so the water soaks down rather than running off, and in the morning. Young trees need watering far more often than established ones, and a tree that drops fruit early or produces small fruit is often short of water. Mulch around the base to hold moisture.
When should I thin fruit in summer?
In early summer, if you did not do it in late spring. Leave one fruit per cluster on apples and pears, spaced roughly a hand's width apart, and thin peaches to one fruit every fifteen centimetres or so. Thin the heaviest branches hardest, and prop any branch that is bending.
How do I stop birds eating my fruit?
Drape netting over a simple frame as soon as the first fruit colours, so birds cannot reach the fruit through the netting, and check it daily so wildlife does not become tangled. Pick ripe fruit promptly, and consider a fruit cage if birds are a regular problem.
When is summer fruit ready to pick?
Strawberries when fully red, raspberries when they come away from the core with a gentle tug, blueberries when fully blue, and tree fruit when the background colour changes and the fruit comes away with a gentle lift and twist. Pick in the morning and taste one first.
Should I feed fruit trees in summer?
Usually only lightly — a compost mulch in spring is enough for most established trees, and heavy feeding pushes soft growth that attracts aphids. Feed strawberries after fruiting, and feed container fruit regularly, because their compost is quickly exhausted.