Pruning

Last June, I posted an observation about pruning, and what I saw happening in 2020. Today I went out to harvest the wild blueberry bush in my front yard. This February I pruned it more heavily than ever before. Today was the first harvest after that pruning. Take a look at the increase.

Here’s the thing about pruning: I was cutting away live, healthy branches that would definitely bear fruit if left alone. But the fruit wasn’t what it COULD be. The 2020 berries were noticeably larger than the 2015 berries – but with last year’s pruning there were still only about the same number. This year, with much deeper pruning – boom! 2021 is at least three times 2020’s first harvest.

And there are just as many unripe blueberries waiting to ripen. I’ll end up with at least double today’s harvest before the season is over.

Even more interesting, about a third of the berry buds that first appeared this spring have shriveled. The bush still couldn’t support what tried to grow – so even more pruning is needed for next year!

The year since last June has been a season of intense, deep pruning in my life. I’ve done a lot of thinking about the things being stripped away… I believe it’s time to start thinking about the fruit to come in my life, instead of mourning the things that have been taken away.