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We have a beautiful Japanese Maple "Red Dragon" that we dont know how to manage. Right now it resembles a shaggy-haired animal. Do we leave it alone or ?
Also, we recently had to get into pruning out a huge line of wax myrtles that would have otherwise been cut off at the ground level (there are way too many of them on our property). Aside from letting the 'breeze in', what else should we do to them? We know that now isnt the time for this, but as I said, they'd be gone altogether if it werent for this now.
One more issue: We had an obscenely overgrown row of Japanese Holly bushes that were about to be removed because we did not like or want them as they were. Instead, we gave them a chance and cut them off about a foot or two from the ground level. If they survive and bush out again, great (managable little bushes there would be fine). Otherwise, they're outta here. Will they survive this mutilation in early July in NC? Pics follow - Thanks.
Location: somewhere close to Tampa, but closer to the beach
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Nice Red Dragon..wish some of ours out here looked so lush..anyhow,..
Any pruning done on Japanese maples should be done (aside from minor tip-pinching) while the tree is dormant..simply because this will reduce any possibility of stress on the tree..
As for how you might shape it???..you could give it a "lift" and remove some of the branches which reach the ground..opening it up to expose the shape of the trunk..much like a Bonsai..
As for the wax Myrtle..IMO, the one pictured already seems to have a really nice form..Id probably thin it,..removing alot of the "inside" growth and, again, exposing the trunks more.. If you have a number of them on your property, you might consider removing a few and really working with the remaining specimens..ive seen a few in the past which looked fantastic when maintained and tempered a little..
Overall, when pruning, the rules are pretty simple, prune to remove cris crossing, rubbing, dead, or diseased branches..and to thin out overly dense canopies or interiors.. Never pollard or hat rack..
As for the hollies, they should be fine..and you should be able to keep them under controll better..but, if you still don't like how they look, take em' out..and not to dinner..
Nice Red Dragon..wish some of ours out here looked so lush..anyhow,..
Any pruning done on Japanese maples should be done (aside from minor tip-pinching) while the tree is dormant..simply because this will reduce any possibility of stress on the tree..
As for how you might shape it???..you could give it a "lift" and remove some of the branches which reach the ground..opening it up to expose the shape of the trunk..much like a Bonsai..
As for the wax Myrtle..IMO, the one pictured already seems to have a really nice form..Id probably thin it,..removing alot of the "inside" growth and, again, exposing the trunks more.. If you have a number of them on your property, you might consider removing a few and really working with the remaining specimens..ive seen a few in the past which looked fantastic when maintained and tempered a little..
Overall, when pruning, the rules are pretty simple, prune to remove cris crossing, rubbing, dead, or diseased branches..and to thin out overly dense canopies or interiors.. Never pollard or hat rack..
As for the hollies, they should be fine..and you should be able to keep them under controll better..but, if you still don't like how they look, take em' out..and not to dinner..
My *** Maple looked even worse when I bought my place as the previous owner just hacked it with a hedge pruner. I work on it each winter thinning the over grown areas, shaping to leave the higher branches and removing the long ones reaching the ground. I try not to remove too much of the tree each year as it will respond by putting out many more long branches that will reach the ground. After three years it is improving and in three more it should look more like the tree I want.
My *** Maple looked even worse when I bought my place as the previous owner just hacked it with a hedge pruner. I work on it each winter thinning the over grown areas, shaping to leave the higher branches and removing the long ones reaching the ground. I try not to remove too much of the tree each year as it will respond by putting out many more long branches that will reach the ground. After three years it is improving and in three more it should look more like the tree I want.
Do you have any photos to share? Can you take one?
I am leaning towards lifting it from the ground but I dont like the idea of just snipping its branches back. I am far from knowing what I'm doing so anyone please jump in and suggest ways to attack it. Why does it have some greener leaves/areas and others are mostly burgundy?
I kinda like your shaggy haired monster. I think you should name it and consider it a non mobile pet.
But seriously..... remember that pruning encourages new growth right where you have pruned. So limb up your maple this winter. Remove the limbs starting close to the ground and go all the way to the trunk Don't just willy nilly start cutting. If you gradually expose the main trunk, it will be more light to all parts of the tree and start to look more lacey. It really is pretty and I have had lots of luck with japanese maples in stressful situations. In it's 30 years of life my maple has been moved to different cities twice- one at 5 years old and once at 8 years old. One time we came home from vacation to find half it's roots exposed to air for two weeks due to a sink hole. A few years later we had to get a new septic tank and again it had to be moved. I do love that tree.
You ever notice that arborists do pruning all year long, generally omitting a few species as exceptions?
I have a book on my shelf by Dr. Alex Shigo, who was a leading tree researcher and scientist. He's pretty much the "Father of modern arboriculture". The book mentioned two so-called "perfect" times of year to prune trees, which is right after leaves fall off, and just after leaves emerge.
But on the next page he said that pruning can be done any time of year. That would mean light to moderate pruning.
Consider that there must be a "perfect" time of year for everything - even washing car paint. Maybe 56 degrees is the perfect temperature or time for washing. But we wash our cars all year, avoiding cold water on hot windshields and paint on the warmest days.
So some light tweaking on the inside should be safe. But you could easilly wait for winter if you want to.
Stay on top of your maintenance and you won't face a renovation like this one I did for a lady in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Still came out pretty nice though.
About the heavy chopping on the holly, if they are exposed to sun, removal of top growth this time of year can expose lower bark to sunburn.
I kinda like your shaggy haired monster. I think you should name it and consider it a non mobile pet.
But seriously..... remember that pruning encourages new growth right where you have pruned. So limb up your maple this winter. Remove the limbs starting close to the ground and go all the way to the trunk Don't just willy nilly start cutting. If you gradually expose the main trunk, it will be more light to all parts of the tree and start to look more lacey. It really is pretty and I have had lots of luck with japanese maples in stressful situations. In it's 30 years of life my maple has been moved to different cities twice- one at 5 years old and once at 8 years old. One time we came home from vacation to find half it's roots exposed to air for two weeks due to a sink hole. A few years later we had to get a new septic tank and again it had to be moved. I do love that tree.
Great story! You really are attached to that maple! I will have to seriously consider what you've said. The tree really is gorgeous and the picture does it no justice whatsoever - it is a beautiful, deep burst of burgundy among the greens.
Can you elaborate on what you've said about the pruning? Particularly the second sentence confuses me a bit. I start at the ground level, snipping away the what, sucker branches or something? Work my way up and around there so that the branches are gone and there is a little 'stem' trunk showing? Can you tell me if I should be snipping any length off of the branches, and whether or not to remove inner branches for the 'lacey' look you mentioned? Thanks for everything!
mdvaden - what in the name of the world IS THAT you renovated???? Was that thing a Japanese Maple?? Did you go in and determine it was alive, so you're resuscitating it or something? How many hours of sweat did that take you?!
mdvaden - what in the name of the world IS THAT you renovated???? Was that thing a Japanese Maple?? Did you go in and determine it was alive, so you're resuscitating it or something? How many hours of sweat did that take you?!
I was glad it was winter. Because the trapped leaves make it rather dusty.
It's available to tell from the twig color how much live growth is on the plant - which in this case were about 6 Japanese maples just like that one. The ladder is 10' tall, so all 6 weeping maples were about 9 feet high. These were probably the most loaded with old leaves and dead twigs of any I've done since 1988 when I started pruning service. But other ones have been almost comparable at times.
Each tree took about an hour and a half to prune and clean up the limbs. Each tree produced a pile of debris almost the same volume as the finished canopy. But all 6 were pruned like that one in a single day. Seems I cleaned up limbs and raked the next morning. You can see one more of the group to the left, the the tip-top of another to the left. 6 of them.
Even though it's dusty and crusty under trees like this, if the outer shell of canopy is healthy, almost all have been fun to work on.
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