How to Fix a Poorly Pruned Plant

Five common pruning mistakes—and how to fix them

There is nothingless noticeable than an excellentpruningjob . But on the flip side , there is nothing more noticeable than a ill pruned plant . Pruning is a science and an nontextual matter . The science involves recognizing plant flaws and skillfully eliminating or minimizing these blemish . Theartisticend involves removing these bad portion or part with a mask grace so that the plant appears unblemished and unaffected . As nurseryman , though , we sometimes forget about one of these aspect when crop , and that ’s when we makemistakes .

Learn more : Pruning Shortcuts for the Busy Gardener

Everyone can tie in to that feeling of terror after making a cut and realise that you ’ve just destroy the shape of your bush . Or perhaps you ’ve ignored a plant life ’s obvious structural trouble because you were afraid or timid of what lop action to take . wrong pruning can lead not only to horrifying industrial plant but also to liability in the landscape . There is some recourse , gratefully , for these errors in pruning legal opinion . Here ’s a tilt of the five pruning mistakes I see most often and advice on how to fix them to preserve your plants and your saneness .

Brush up on the Pruning Basics

Have you ever tried to read a book on pruning and feel like it was written in a foreign speech communication ? Do n’t worry — you’re not alone . Here are some common terms to familiarize yourself with before your next cutting adventure :

Apical bud

The bud that produces new growth , typically located at the tip of a branch ; also known as the dominant or terminal bud

Auxin

A ontogenesis hormone witness in apical buds that promotes cell air division ( new development ) and suppress any humble buds from growing

Latent bud

Any bud — typically below the apical bud — that remains abeyant or underdeveloped for a recollective time but may eventually grow

Lateral branch

Any branch or small stem turn that grows off the loss leader

Leader

The primary or prevailing stem of a plant

Main side branch

A large lateral branch that is ordinarily only somewhat modest in diameter than the loss leader

Mistake #1:You keep snipping the tips of your plants to keep them in check

Why it ’s bad :

We sometimes think that too many large cut will hurt the works but that smaller cuts wo n’t harm anything . In realness , snipping the tips of branches ( stub out ) is one of the worst pruning mistake you could make . Pruning stimulates the plant to get , so when you snip the gratuity of one branch , four to six newfangled leg take its place . This abundance of new branches happen because removing the tip of the outgrowth also removes the apical ( dominant ) bud , which chemically suppress the buds below from growing . When the cornucopia of Modern subdivision grow , the typical answer is , again , to prune off the fresh outgrowth — and so the vicious cycle of snip begins .

How to fix it :

Making a few large cut — rather than a gazillion smaller cuts — is the best scheme . But if you are in the heart of a snipping incubus , you need to allow all the multiple new branches to rise from below the pruning cut . At the closing of the farm time of year ( later summer to early gloam ) , select the strongest and most vigorous branch of the bunch , making sure that it is growing in a suitable counseling . take away all the other compete arm back to the trunk , if potential , or back to the chief affirm limb . This will ensure that the take branch will have a dominant bud , preventing the subdivision below from get back .

Mistake #2:Your conifers are out of control in summer, so you cut back the longest branches

It can be a painfulness when coniferous tree become too large , acquire too fast , or just plain get in the way . The natural reaction is to murder the portion of the tree branch that is causing the problem and no farther back than perfectly necessary . But this always pass on a branch counterfoil sticking out . If pruned falsely , conifers seldom — if ever — recover . Most of the new growth on a conifer is generally deduct from bud formed on the late time of year ’s growth . The unexampled bud are primarily on the ends of the outgrowth and expand in former natural spring to constitute the new growth ( also called “ candles ” ) . Cutting back into the honest-to-god wood on the limb , beyond where the raw growth bud are settle , usually results in a permanent stub , which is also know as an “ middle gouger . ” It is always browned and always ugly .

If you have a shrub or tree with arm stubs , you need to remove the stubbed - out branch all the way back to the body or cut back to the near healthy sidelong branch . If pruning is done early enough , young bud will evolve near the gash for the next season ’s growth .

Mistake #3:You shear your weeping cherry tree so that it looks like it has a Beatle haircut

Sometimes we see plant as geometrical shapes in a landscape but block that they grow and change . A gardener may like a works for its color or fragrance but not its natural form . The problem is that , despite persevering pruning , the darn things keep growing into places they should n’t . The more you shape the flora , the denser it becomes , and finally , it starts to die from the inside out .

consummate remotion of a plant is better than constantly fighting its raw sizing or shape . Remember that a plant ’s ontogenesis habit is genetically predetermine and that pruning will never slow plant growth . For plants that have been subject to long time of repeated shearing and defining , you need to selectively thin those dumb areas surcharge with offset . Remove integral sections of branches back to the luggage compartment , working from underneath and inside the plant . Leave the outfacing ( scaffold ) branches in spot . This allows sunlight to penetrate the plant ’s Department of the Interior , which shake latent buds to maturate normally rather than in a bunch up - up fashion . remain to reduce and take out these obtuse branch clusters every year , making slash profoundly into the plant . Ideally , you ’ll want to achieve a balance between the longsighted scaffold branches and the littler lateral branches at heart .

Mistake #4:The tree in the front yard is too tall, so you chop off the top to make it stop growing up

Although most top-hole tragedies occur because we want to maintain a works at a specific height or to keep it from growing too fast , some plant miss their top ( main leader ) due to insect damage , disease , or even heavy boo landing on tender new emergence and click it off — it sound far - fetched , but I ’ve see it happen . lead plants or cut the central loss leader is fine when you want to make a scrawny bush broad and full , but it is a nightmare for trees . remove the summit of the tree do the tree diagram to produce several new loss leader to supervene upon the ones lose . These leaders compete with each other and compromise the structural wholeness of the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ; trees with one rife key luggage compartment transportation better when faced with wind , snow , or ice storm . Also , remember that a Great Pyramid is the most effective shape for harvesting sunshine and , therefore , for maintaining plant health .

With deciduous trees , choice and restore one vigorous leader . Keep this adage in mind : “ leadership lead and are the highest up . ” Prune out any competing leader or excessively fast-growing lower offshoot so that the remaining branch becomes dominant . With conifers , select the most vigorous sidelong branch below the nub of the former leader and merely bend it up . Using covering tape , attach the dented lateral branch to the master stem of the tree . Masking tape is effective because it finally smash down , loses its adherence , and drop away without deaden the new trained leader .

Mistake #5:You decide not to prune

Not prune is probably the most vulgar pruning misunderstanding among gardeners . Some are fearful to make drastic gash because they retrieve it will cause more harm than good ; others worry that any pruning will provide unsightly golf hole or correct back the growth of a plant . twelvemonth subsequently , they ca n’t understand why their redtwig dogwood tree ( Cornusalbaand cvs . , USDA Hardiness Zones 2–8 ) or ‘ Flame ’ willow tree ( Salix‘Flame ’ , Zones 3–6 ) does n’t have bright color stem any longer . Without pruning , the desire coloring will disappear because it is the new growth that has the brightest hues .

One word : Prune . For shrub with intense bark gloss , like bush dogwoods and willow , you need to remove the sometime , colorless ramification . For shrub dogwood tree , these branches will be those that are more than two to three years old ; for willows , every branch should be removed every twelvemonth . cornel staunch should be removed as cheeseparing as possible to the base ( diadem ) of the plant life , and willow branches should be cut back to about 6 to 12 inch long . This remotion stir the plant to produce unexampled Grant Wood in beautiful colors .

Pruning Tip:A double leader is just as bad as no leader

In the case of tree diagram leaders , two is not skilful than one . A tree with a double loss leader is a vast problem because gruelling branches develop on the outside of the two independent stems . This matter down the two drawing card and strains the spot where they are joined , eventually splitting the tree . To fix this landscape luck , select the strong and straightest of the two leaders . Make a 30- to 45 - degree undercut on the other leader to remove it . This ensures that wet , which causes rot , does n’t remain on the pruning cut .

Erik Draper is a commercial - horticulture educator , assistant prof , and county situation director at Ohio State University in Geauga County .

Photos , except where noted : Courtesy of Erik Draper

Illustrations : Judy Simon

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