By Christine Reid.
It’s that time of year again. You know, when people with sharp implements start roaming outdoors with a gleam in their eyes. Yes, it’s time to be afraid ... but only if you’re a tree or a shrub. It’s the pruning Super Bowl in central Texas!
Knowing when and how to prune is as much an art as it is a horticultural skill. Often the tree, shrub or plant is getting trimmed for our benefit, not theirs. We may want bigger flowers and fruit and
When needed, pruning trees can result in healthier, more attractive blossoms.(Photos by Christine Reid) |
lots of them. Maybe we want the tree by the house to have a different shape or we don’t like the suckers at the base of the tree. Perhaps someone (no one’s naming names, mind you) got some garden shears, loppers or pruning saws recently and they absolutely have to use them. That brings up one of the most important points about pruning: always have a good reason to trim a tree or plant. If you don’t have one, then don’t prune!
Generally, trim shade, fruit and ornamental trees in late winter, right before spring growth. Summer flowering trees and shrubs like althea, butterfly bush, vitex and crape myrtle are pruned then. Also, and only if necessary, prune live oaks and red oaks in late winter, as the bark beetles, which spread oak wilt disease, are less active at that time. Before pruning these oaks, you may want to contact the county extension office for more information. Now, just a few words about wound sealing products. With one exception, don’t use them! Arborists have found that pruning paints slow down the healing process. The only time you should use them is when you’re pruning live oaks and red oaks. Giving the bark beetles a chance to enter the tree wound is just too risky, so using a sealant is appropriate. Apply right after pruning.
When pruning a tree branch that is less than 1 ½ inches in diameter, cut back to a branch or an outside bud, at a 45-degree angle, which will help it dry faster after a rain. Make the cut just outside the branch collar, which is the somewhat raised area surrounding the union with the parent branch. The branch collar zone contains chemically-protective tissue. Don’t leave a stub as that can encourage rot but also avoid making cuts that are flush with the tree, as those can’t heal properly. When trimming a branch that’s larger than 1 ½ inches in diameter, use a three-part cut. The first cut should be on the bottom of the branch, about 6-12 inches out from the trunk, cutting about a third of the way through. Then, starting three inches out from that cut, saw down, from the top of the branch, until it falls away. Then saw the remaining stub, taking care to cut back to the branch collar. This method prevents the bark from tearing away. With some trees, you may need to remove narrow crotch angles, less than 40 degrees. They are weak compared to wide crotch angles, which are generally at 40 to 90 degrees and are composed of solid wood.
Evergreens, such as ligustrums, juniper, photinia, etc. can be lightly shaped, if needed, throughout the year. Shrubs such as holly or pyracantha produce berries on old or second-year growth, so heavy trimming could eliminate berries altogether.
Pruning Dos and Don’ts • Do copy nature’s pruning techniques and leave the tree or plant with a natural shape • Don’t over prune • Do use the correct tools and clean after pruning • Don’t make flush cuts • Don’t paint cuts on trees unless you’re dealing with live oaks and red oaks • Do remove damaged, dead or diseased branches • Don’t top off trees (as in ‘Crape Murder’) because it weakens the tree and looks awful • Don’t remove any branch that’s larger than a pencil unless you have a very good reason |
Spring flowering shrubs, like forsythia, redbud, azalea, Texas Mountain Laurel, quince and spirea, should be trimmed back, if needed, after they bloom in the spring. Also, roses that bloom just once a year in the spring, like Lady Banks, are cut back right after they flower. If you prune spring bloomers in the late winter, you’ll be cutting off future blooms! In late winter, cut hybrid roses back to a height of 18 to 24 inches, leaving four to six main stems pointing outward.
Cut back repeat flowering antique roses and other non-hybrids twice a year: right before the fall and now, right before spring. That will stimulate them to bloom and grow more vigorously. It’s also a good time to remove dead canes and rubbing branches and to open the plant up to the sunlight, which helps reduce diseases. Cut them back by up to a third, retaining the plant’s shape. Using bypass pruners, cut at a 45-degree angle above an outward facing bud, if possible. Busy gardeners who have a lot of roses to prune tend to be less precise and have been known to just shear them, with no adverse effects. Luckily, most roses, especially antiques, are quite forgiving!
Different fruit trees require different pruning techniques. Stone fruits like peaches and plums usually do best when given a martini glass shape. That design allows the sun into the middle of the tree and keeps the fruit on the outer branches, which makes it easier to harvest. Apple and pear trees do well with a central leader, where only one branch is in the center and competing branches are removed, allowing the others limbs to grow as scaffold around the center. Pomegranate and fig trees usually do best with little to no pruning, leaving them with a natural shape.
It’s always a good idea to do some research before pruning something for the first time, in order to learn the best methods for that particular tree or plant. And if you have trees to prune that you can’t reach without a ladder, it may be best to call a professional arborist.
Pruning at the right time, using the proper tools, disinfecting them after each cut and choosing the correct pruning design will result in healthy, attractive trees that will grow stronger, bloom and fruit better and bring a lot of enjoyment. Just keep in mind that every pruning cut, no matter how necessary, is a wound to a tree, so make it a good one!
Any questions? Send email to [email protected] or call (512) 398-6011.
