When is a good time of year to prune an apple/plum tree and how far down the branch do you cut?

You should prune the trees between Autumn and early Spring - before the buds burst and leaves begin to appear. To prune first of all cut out any dead, damaged or unhealthy looking branches. Next cut off branches that cross other branches. The idea is to create an open shape to allow air to pass through the tree. To reshape the tree don't cut off more than around 25% of the length of any branch. Always cut back to a side shoot ie. don't leave a long stub that can leave the tree open to infection. If heavy pruning is needed on an old, uncared for tree do it gradually over a few years. Doing it all in one go can cause the tree to produce a lot of untidy, unproductive new growth. Justin

Alan Titchmarsh is the man you need to speak to but i do not beleive he is a member of MYBUILDER.