TIPS ABOUT CUTTING OFF LIMBS
Don’t be a prude about pruning

NOTHING STRIKES terror into the heart of the concern-
ed, inexperienced gardener like the thought of pruning.

“You mean 1 have to cut its
limbs off? Good God! I just can’t
do it.”*

Well I am here to tell you that
not only can you do it but you
must. If you should neglect to
conduct regular amputations on
your trees and shrubs, they will
most likely have to be totally
dismembered in the future. So
what’s it going to be, an occasional
trim or decapitation from the roots
up?

‘“Ok! Fine! So where do I start?
When? What and how much
should I take off? How do I avoid
spoiling its lovely shape? Etc.’
Well, bound as I am to the tradi-
tions of the cliche, we had best
start at the beginning.

The earlier you take control of
the direction your tree or shrub is
growing, the easier it will be to
assure its health, shape, size and
safety.

I would caution you against not
trying to force a Norway maple in-
to the sha--: 2nd scale of a Japa-
nese maple.

Your goal should be to get the
most your plant's natural beauty
has to offer rather than attempting
to make it something it is not. The
only way this can be accomplished
is by getting an early start.

In light of this, I would suggest
that decisions regarding the prun-
ing of your plant should be made
before it is planted. If you were to
position your trees and shrubs in

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the right location to start with, lit-
tle, if any pruning would be re-
quired.

What is the point of planting a
Giant California Redwood six feet
away from a second-storey view
window? This beast will quickly
try to blot out the view and
nothing short of complete removal
will prevent it.

Although minor pruning and
shaping could and should be done
at any time of the year, the most
desirable period is near the end of
the dormant season: around mid-
January to mid-February.

Any major pruning (cuts larger
than the diameter of your thumb)
are best left uutil that time of the
year.

You should realize that your tree
or shrub has spent the last year
building up energy reserves, ready-
ing itself for a burst of growth in
spring. It doesn’t take a dizzyingly
high IQ to realize that this is the
best time to inflict injury, when the
tree has the best chance of speedy
recovery,

Conversely, mid-spring is the
worst time. The sap is thin and
flowing rapidly and energy reserves
are low.

If you miss this current oppor-
tunity and cannot wait unti) next
winter, at least wait until the end
of the growing season: the end of
July to mid-September.

In answer to what parts should
be pruned or removed, start with

YEAR!

the dying or dead branches. These
must be removed back to healthy
wood in order to reduce the risk of
a disease or insect pest invasion
(and reduce the likelihood of it
falling on your head).

over the
garden gate

Geoff Tobiasson
De

Next, remove the branches of
trees that are likely to snap off ata
later date. Typically, these grow
out of the stem at a severely acute
angle. Also remove any suskers
and water sprouts, which are
tecognized as thin, upright, whip-
like branches.

As previously mentioned, the
best pruning results in a shape that
enhances your plant’s natural

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9 STR PRIA!

growth characteristics. In order to
ascertain how much, and where,
pruning is required, look to these
attributes and work with them, not
against them.

All of God’s creatures are
perfect in their imperfections. Our
imperfection lies most commonly

“All of God’s creatures
are perfect in their
imperfections. Our
imperfection lies most
commonly in trying to
correct the defects we
have erroneously
perceived God to have
created,’’

in trying to correct the defects we
have erroneously perceived God to
have created.

An obvious example would be
an upright branch growing out of a
weeping tree such as a weeping
cherry. The moment it comes into
view my fingers itch for a pruning
saw so I may restore harmony to
the world. Sheeesh!

I can live with these minor criti-
cisms of God’s capabilities, as long
as we don’t get carried away. But
when I witness the wholesale

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slaughter of a 200-year-old stand
of trees for the sake of opening up
a view, I see the hand of the devil.

If I could afford one of those
mountainside estates, | too would
covet the vista. But I would prefer
thinning the branches of a tree and
opening ‘windows’ rather than op-
ting for wholesale removal.

And I also warn against the evils
of topping. Water and debris tend
to collect in the flattened area
created by topping. This will surely
result in rot eating into the coze of
the tree.

When iooking for the right place
to make your cuts, think about the
healing process.

Each branch is normally sur-
rounded by a ring of swollen bark
at the point where it emerges from
the trunk. This ring, sometimes
referred to as the ‘branch collar,’
is the area from which healing
growth will be generated.

If you make your cuts flush
against the bark, you will damage
the branch collar and the healing
process will be slowed. Better to
make your cut just outside the col-
lar and at right angle to the direc-
tion of the branch’s growth.

I hope I have been of some help
in reducing your fears concerning
the proper pruning of trees and
shrubs. A trip to your local library
will provide you with more infor-
mation specific to your particular
plant.

Good luck.

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