Unlike repeated knife girdling, a plastic tie does no damage to the tree. It is applied in the winter and removed after harvest to allow the tree to recover.  A Georgia researcher is testing plastic cable ties as an alternative to knife girdling of peach trees for improving the size and sweetness of the fruit. Knife girdling is used on peaches to manage fruit size and advance harvest, but it has drawbacks, too, Dr. Kathryn Taylor of the University of Georgia, noted during the International Fruit Tree Association’s annual conference. It can result in split pits (because of too much […]