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

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/

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

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.

In article , wrote:

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.

That probably doesn't so much apply to red-twig dogwoods, which are
multi-stemmed bushes, not trees, & a bit more comparable in behavior &
care to such shrubs as forsythia.

-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/

(paghat) wrote in message ...
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. [...]

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.[...]

Maybe the above also applies to the old world red-twig, but I don't have
that so not certain.

Yes, same rules for European Cornus alba as for American C.
stolonifera.

If your climate's right, with reasonable moisture in the summer, you
get a very good effect with the coloured bark -- not "stunty spidery"
at all. An established plant with several dozen bright wands standing
up is a striking sight to cheer a winter's day. Just depends what your
design needs. I have two big dome-shaped ones as punctuation either
side of my drive, and prune those only when they overhang too far; but
a row of hard-pruned ones in another spot.

Mike.

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.

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.