Pruning Practices 101

There are many analogies to be made between life and the garden. One of the most obvious is to cut back or prune out the parts that are dead or diseased; making hard cuts now to restore a plant to better health.

I think one of my neighbors had that in mind early this fine March morning. With a spring in his step and rusty loppers in hand, he attacked a row of anonymous shrubs and annoying trees that separate our little parks (the affectionate word we have for our rectangles of real estate.)

Switching his baseball cap to face backward, the better to get a good look at those nasty, overgrown things, pushing up his grey sweat-shirted sleeves, he first whipped out a tape measure to make sure his moves were uniform. The rest is reckless history. With loppers lopping and choppers chopping, he advanced his row with all of the enthusiasm of a guy wanting to get a job done. The raking will probably be done tomorrow or next weekend or whenever … .

Well, so what, they are only forsythias--you cannot really hurt them and our apple trees will soon be blocking his blundering … at least he feels better.

The sudden urge to purge our homes of clutter and dust--known affectionately to some as "spring cleaning"--to the outdoors types, the nature lovers, OK us gardeners, this means pruning.     

Along with melting snow and the sudden return of songbirds to our backyards, there is other evidence of spring.  You may notice some swelling in the tips of the branches on your trees, a slight bit of the color of dormant buds, getting ready to burst out. 

This period of late dormancy is exactly the time to sharpen those shears! (Yes, yes, it is a bit nippy, but if my neighbor is out there … .) Sharp blades make cleaner cuts, enhancing faster healing and less disease. Rusty blades make jagged cuts, which slow the defense hormones process in sealing up the wounds. 

Pruning With a Purpose

Author/arborist Bill Logan, founder of Urban Arborists and instructor at the New York Botanical Garden, says, “You must prune with a purpose!” In his course on backyard pruning techniques, he advocates starting with a plan: Determine your objectives: Are there safety issues? Do your trees or shrubs have evidence of pests or diseases? Do you want or need more light or air? Are shrubs or trees too close to walkways, places where cars are parked, children’s play areas. Are overgrown shrubs hovering near rooftops or shading windows, blocking a view, growing too close to utility wires? Is something just so doggone ugly that your neighbors are whispering? 

Take a walk outside with paper and pen. Jot down your objectives with regards especially to the trees and shrubs that enhance your property. A hard winter, with lots of wind and snow, often translates to damage in the form of broken branches or die-back. Make note of each and every tree, looking for broken or hanging limbs. These are the first on the list to be removed--especially in an area of high traffic. Diseased branches must go as well to promote the overall health of the plant.

Acknowledge Your Limitations

It is all well and good to send a mostly awake teenager out to cut the grass or someone in the house with a moderate amount of knowledge to trim a few scraggly branches. Shrubs and trees, however, are a big investment and can really influence the value of your home. It is much better to train trees and shrubs from the very beginning, rather than wait until your house is on the market. Watch a few shows on curb appeal or landscape make-overs and see how much of a difference consistent pruning makes.

Enormous trees need the attention of specialists: arborists or ISA-certified professionals.

Smaller trees and shrubs are the domain of those with a few hours a couple of times of year to attend to judiciously for value and aesthetics. Ideally, your plantings were purchased in accordance with the teachings of ag agent Joel Flagler of Rutgers Cooperative Extension who teaches “the right plant for the right place.” A weeping willow looks perfect when it is newly purchased but in a few years may grow wider or taller than the home it was planted near and impossible to prune to a manageable size.

A Little Botany Here

If you look carefully at your trees, you should see one leader. In the case of large, established trees, this means one dominant branch that heads for the sky to form the canopy layer. The job of this branch is to leaf out and capture light to facilitate the process of photosynthesis. This top layer also acts as protector to the understory, the inner branches whose leaves act like worker bees, producing most of the fuel needed by the entire plant.

When a tree is struggling, because of age or disease, it may send out a plethora of suckers or water sprouts, signaling a deficiency of either light or other needs related to photosynthesis. The gardener needs to pay close attention to these signs before they become problematic. Remove any dead or crossed branches, especially if crossed ones are rubbing. Cut water sprouts back as they compete with the leader for light and energy.

And remember the physician’s creed: “Prima non nocere.” Do no harm--to either yourself, your neighbors, your neighbors’ plants and, of course, the plants (or trees) themselves. Forsythia may be forgiving, but keep the 20 percent rule in mind: Removing anything more than that from most trees/shrubs/plants is too much at one time. It is better to make a long-term plan and stick to it.

Good choices now save a lot of work later. Or you can just stick with forsythia.

Some excellent resources are a pruning primer published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the Northeastern Area (NA-FR-01-95) www.na.FS.fed.us/spfo/pubs/how to/ht_prun001.html  as well as contacting the horticultural consultant at the Bergen County Cooperative Extension, 1 Bergen County Plaza, Hackensack. 201-336-6788