Buying produce every week can add up, so making the most of your home garden can help reduce grocery expenses. If fruit trees are included in your garden, this TikToker revealed a gardening hack that'll help them thrive.
The scoop
Suzette Chaumette (@foodindy) shared her best technique for growing high-quality fruit in her home garden: pruning.
In a viral TikTok video, Chaumette emphasizes how important pruning is to fruit-bearing trees, which is often a forgotten step in home gardens. The primary goal is to have fewer branches on your tree by cutting small, nonessential ones.
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When you prune a plant, tree, or vine, you are removing parts that are not required for growth, production, or the overall health of the plant. It is a common — and sometimes overlooked — practice to help improve yield for flowers and fruits.
"If you've got too many branches, and all that water has to go to all the branches, it takes away from the quality of the fruit," Chaumette explains.
The first step to pruning your fruit tree is identifying the smallest branches that need to be removed. These are usually offshoots to thicker branches. Chaumette provides examples of what branches that can be pruned look like in her TikTok. Once you've figured out which branches need to go, use some gardening shears to remove them.
"You can walk away from your tree knowing that you're going to give them the best chance at producing high-quality, sweet, juicy fruit," Chaumette says.
How it's helping
Sustaining a high-quality home garden will not only give you delicious produce to eat, but it can help you save money too. Growing your own fruits and vegetables can also help reduce your grocery bills.
The average American household will spend about $756 on fruit and vegetables annually. With a 600-square-foot garden, you can grow about 300 pounds of produce, which can add up to roughly $600 in savings each year.
There are many environmental benefits to maintaining a home garden as well. The plants in your garden will absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and replenish and protect the soil in your yard.
Eating locally grown fruits and vegetables can reduce your reliance on dirty energy sources like gas, since produce will not have to travel great distances via planes or trucks to reach your kitchen.
Not only will you help protect the planet and save money on your grocery run, but you'll have the added satisfaction of knowing your food is the literal fruit of your labor.
What everyone's saying
Some home gardeners forget the importance of pruning, and Chaumette's fellow TikTok users appreciate the reminder. Many users expressed their gratitude in the video's comment section.
"This was so informative and fascinating," One TikToker writes.
"I have apple trees and haven't pruned, but now I definitely will," another user says.
A TikToker adds, "Thank you for explaining while showing what it means for those of us who don't quite understand."
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