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Pruning Red Twig Dogwood
Is it a good idea to cut this thing back to a few inches after it has
had several years without any trimming? What is the proper method of annual trimming and what is the proper method to handle an older overgrown plant? -- Joseph E. Meehan 26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math |
Pruning Red Twig Dogwood
In article , "Joseph Meehan"
wrote: Is it a good idea to cut this thing back to a few inches after it has had several years without any trimming? What is the proper method of annual trimming and what is the proper method to handle an older overgrown plant? If you mean the American redtwig C. stolonifera = C. sericea, when not pruned this will flower well & berry profusely, but get large & by some assessments leggy (I prefer "large & fountaining"). Spring-pruned specimens have much brighter red or golden young stems come winter, & a more compact appearance for spring through autumn foliage, but also very few flowers & berries. Pruning is not necessary for health, but only to increase youthful limbs with brightest winter color. It can have a third pruned out of it every other year & probably still berry nicely. If hard pruned entirely or annually, forget berries; I don't know why anyone would shoot for the stunty spidery shrub that results. If bark is still very & it hasn't gotten "in the way" with its suckering & fountaining, there's no reason to prune it that year at all. It could just as easily be left to naturalize never pruned at all, though it'd get awfully big in time. The thick older inner twigs are the ones that should be cut nearly to the ground. If you want to have any flowers only prune out about one-third of the branches in spring, which'll give it the rest of the year to produce fresh twigs which'll be the reddest in winter. Also prune the outermost suckers below the soil line if you want to maintain a compact form & encourage branching more from the middle. It should be done about March or April. If done later in spring, it won't injur the shrub, but it won't look like much in winter, so might as well wait until next March. Summer's a bad time to do it, & for sure won't have developed nice limbs by winter. A major pruning can be done in autumn but then you for sure have a stubbly thing for that winter, so again might as well wait for March & prune just before new growth would begin. Maybe the above also applies to the old world red-twig, but I don't have that so not certain. -paghat the ratgirl -- "Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher. "Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature. -from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers" See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/ |
Pruning Red Twig Dogwood
Hi Joseph Take out crossed and rubbing branches. Diseased and dead wood and thin it out. Make all your cuts flush to a branch leaving no stubs which impede healing over. Derryl Is it a good idea to cut this thing back to a few inches after it has had several years without any trimming? What is the proper method of annual trimming and what is the proper method to handle an older overgrown plant? -- Joseph E. Meehan 26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math |
Pruning Red Twig Dogwood
On Sun, 22 Jun 2003 21:05:18 GMT, "Joseph Meehan"
wrote: Is it a good idea to cut this thing back to a few inches after it has had several years without any trimming? What is the proper method of annual trimming and what is the proper method to handle an older overgrown plant? Dogwoods should be left for the most part untrimmed. One exception is that you can cut off any dead branches and you can prune during the dormancy period. Dogwood trees are very susceptible to disease. Cuts and abrasions heal very slowly making them targets for borers. |
Pruning Red Twig Dogwood
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Pruning Red Twig Dogwood
prune it like to keep lilacs shorter, take out older branches. actually, if it is
really out of control whack it to the ground. red twigs are characteristic of the first years growth and each year it fades. so take out older growth that is darker and larger. they can get very large indeed. Ingrid "Joseph Meehan" wrote: Is it a good idea to cut this thing back to a few inches after it has had several years without any trimming? What is the proper method of annual trimming and what is the proper method to handle an older overgrown plant? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List http://puregold.aquaria.net/ www.drsolo.com Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the endorsements or recommendations I make. |
Pruning Red Twig Dogwood
Thanks all. Funny as I was reading all the replies I was thinking ..
"just like lilacs" -- Joseph E. Meehan 26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math wrote in message ... prune it like to keep lilacs shorter, take out older branches. actually, if it is really out of control whack it to the ground. red twigs are characteristic of the first years growth and each year it fades. so take out older growth that is darker and larger. they can get very large indeed. Ingrid "Joseph Meehan" wrote: Is it a good idea to cut this thing back to a few inches after it has had several years without any trimming? What is the proper method of annual trimming and what is the proper method to handle an older overgrown plant? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List http://puregold.aquaria.net/ www.drsolo.com Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the endorsements or recommendations I make. |
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