I'd like to know what this is so I can find out how to take care of it.
It seems to be very overgrown with a lot of dead branches underneath the
new growth. I'd love to whack it to the ground and let it re-grow, it's
about 3 feet wider than I'd like for the location it's in and it catches
all the neighbor's beer cans and take-out wrappers that blow out of his
pickup.


http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_02.JPG
http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_03.JPG
http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_04.JPG

Any help identifying this bush would be appreciated.



Dawn

"Dawn" wrote in message
...
I'd like to know what this is so I can find out how to take care of it.
It seems to be very overgrown with a lot of dead branches underneath the
new growth. I'd love to whack it to the ground and let it re-grow, it's
about 3 feet wider than I'd like for the location it's in and it catches
all the neighbor's beer cans and take-out wrappers that blow out of his
pickup.


http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_02.JPG
http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_03.JPG
http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_04.JPG

Any help identifying this bush would be appreciated.



Dawn



Looks like a very badly pruned Gold Flame spirea. They aren't meant to be
little balls, but graceful arching shrubs. If it's too big for where it is,
move it, and gradually thin out 1/3 of the oldest canes completely over the
next three years and leave the new canes to assume what size they will. It
will be gorgeous with that golden new growth and produce blooms maybe twice
a year if you keep yourself from hacking it into an unnatural golfball. For
annual pruning, again, remove any winterkill and thin out 1/3 of the oldest
canes and STOP. Hedge clipper pruning creates lots of dead and twiggy and
growth on the bottom that doesn't get any light and can lead to disease.
Formally trimmed boxwood hedges have their place, but hacking flowering
shrubs like spirea, azalias, and forsythia into golfballs should be severely
punished, along with crepe murder.

Sunflower
MS 7b

On Sun, 11 Apr 2004 19:44:10 -0500, Dawn
wrote:

I'd like to know what this is so I can find out how to take care of it.
It seems to be very overgrown with a lot of dead branches underneath the
new growth. I'd love to whack it to the ground and let it re-grow, it's
about 3 feet wider than I'd like for the location it's in and it catches
all the neighbor's beer cans and take-out wrappers that blow out of his
pickup.


http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_02.JPG
http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_03.JPG
http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_04.JPG

Any help identifying this bush would be appreciated.



Dawn

If those yellow things are blooms not leaves, then I vote for
forsythia. One of my most unfavorite things in the world. But
basically they bloom on year old wood, so personally, I'd whack it to
the ground after it's bloomed, then any new growth would bloom next
year. It looks like it's growing too close to the building has been
ignored .. except by the pruning shear guy. They should be put
somewhere with room to grow up and arch over.

If it's a spirea, which I don't think it is, it too would bloom on
year old wood, and too would need a place to grow where it can arch ..
but I wouldn't whack that clear to the ground, as it's not evil like
forsythia ;-)

If you don't want to whack it ALL down, I'd cut out any big canes, and
water it well. Move it if you want to keep .. or move part of it..
where it has room to grow... if you have such a place. If it were on
my place though, I'd be headin' for it with a shovel.. like when I
moved into this house, there was a forsythia out there and I didn't
know if it was on my place or the neighbors's.. and I was headed for
it with the shovel when the guy came out of the house next door, and I
said.. "that in your yard or mine?" He said, I think ours. I said,
damn! and slunk back to my house...dragging the shovel. *sigh* ..
it's still out there pretty much unkempt of cared for clashing with
the pink blossoms of the peach tree with it's yellow green blossoms on
the scraggly mess of a bush, 27 years later!

Janice

On Sun, 11 Apr 2004 21:21:19 -0600, Janice
opined:

On Sun, 11 Apr 2004 19:44:10 -0500, Dawn
wrote:

I'd like to know what this is so I can find out how to take care of it.
It seems to be very overgrown with a lot of dead branches underneath the
new growth. I'd love to whack it to the ground and let it re-grow, it's
about 3 feet wider than I'd like for the location it's in and it catches
all the neighbor's beer cans and take-out wrappers that blow out of his
pickup.


http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_02.JPG
http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_03.JPG
http://www.reddawn.net/dawn/photos/APR11_04.JPG

Any help identifying this bush would be appreciated.



Dawn

If those yellow things are blooms not leaves, then I vote for
forsythia. One of my most unfavorite things in the world. But
basically they bloom on year old wood, so personally, I'd whack it to
the ground after it's bloomed, then any new growth would bloom next
year. It looks like it's growing too close to the building has been
ignored .. except by the pruning shear guy. They should be put
somewhere with room to grow up and arch over.

If it's a spirea, which I don't think it is, it too would bloom on
year old wood, and too would need a place to grow where it can arch ..
but I wouldn't whack that clear to the ground, as it's not evil like
forsythia ;-)

If you don't want to whack it ALL down, I'd cut out any big canes, and
water it well. Move it if you want to keep .. or move part of it..
where it has room to grow... if you have such a place. If it were on
my place though, I'd be headin' for it with a shovel.. like when I
moved into this house, there was a forsythia out there and I didn't
know if it was on my place or the neighbors's.. and I was headed for
it with the shovel when the guy came out of the house next door, and I
said.. "that in your yard or mine?" He said, I think ours. I said,
damn! and slunk back to my house...dragging the shovel. *sigh* ..
it's still out there pretty much unkempt of cared for clashing with
the pink blossoms of the peach tree with it's yellow green blossoms on
the scraggly mess of a bush, 27 years later!

Janice

It's not a forsythia. Do not "whack" it to the ground without knowing what it
is. The photos are very poor and not clear enough to identify it properly. I
can tell you, it's definitely not forsythia. Even if it was, I would never
recommend hacking it to the ground.

"escapee" wrote in message
...
It's not a forsythia. Do not "whack" it to the ground without knowing
what it
is. The photos are very poor and not clear enough to identify it properly.
I
can tell you, it's definitely not forsythia. Even if it was, I would
never
recommend hacking it to the ground.

I tend to agree with Escapee. To whack a forsythia to the ground sacrifices
the blooms for two years. Copicing is fine if done properly. (copicing is
to cut something to the ground, also called stooling) If there are no
thorns, then it's a spirea and can be dug up now in early spring, trimmed
back a bit and replanted somewhere you want it.
madgardener who has done such things.

Looks like a very badly pruned Gold Flame spirea. They aren't meant to be
little balls, but graceful arching shrubs.

Thanks, I think you're right. It has little pink flowers when it blooms.
And it's not a "little ball", it's over four feet high and hasn't been
pruned at all in the last five years.



If it's too big for where it is,
move it, and gradually thin out 1/3 of the oldest canes completely over the
next three years and leave the new canes to assume what size they will.

Should I get underneath it and just start cutting out the dead canes?



Dawn

It's not a forsythia. Do not "whack" it to the ground without knowing what it
is. The photos are very poor and not clear enough to identify it properly. I
can tell you, it's definitely not forsythia. Even if it was, I would never
recommend hacking it to the ground.

Sorry, my digital doesn't do well on close-ups. You're right, it's not
forsythia, I know what those look like. Someone suggested Gold Flame
Spirea, and I looked and found a picture that shows exactly what it
looks like when it blooms:

http://courses.smsu.edu/pab532f/GoldFlame2.jpg

Now I guess I need to get out and start removing dead branches.




Dawn

On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 10:00:52 -0500, Dawn
wrote:



It's not a forsythia. Do not "whack" it to the ground without knowing what it
is. The photos are very poor and not clear enough to identify it properly. I
can tell you, it's definitely not forsythia. Even if it was, I would never
recommend hacking it to the ground.

Sorry, my digital doesn't do well on close-ups. You're right, it's not
forsythia, I know what those look like. Someone suggested Gold Flame
Spirea, and I looked and found a picture that shows exactly what it
looks like when it blooms:

http://courses.smsu.edu/pab532f/GoldFlame2.jpg

Now I guess I need to get out and start removing dead branches.

Dawn

I guess I was too subtle in the tongue in cheek part of *IF* it was
forsythia. As I said... If those were blooms not leaves.

I was just kind of joking .. just a little.. that if it were
forsythia.. *I* would dig it out. From the pic you show the link to,
yup definitely not forsythia. ;-)

I like spirea, well the old type with white flowers and arching
branches. Don't know if that one is supposed to grow the same.

Congrats on finding out what it is!

Janice

On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 10:40:30 -0400, "madgardener"
wrote:


"escapee" wrote in message
.. .
It's not a forsythia. Do not "whack" it to the ground without knowing
what it
is. The photos are very poor and not clear enough to identify it properly.
I
can tell you, it's definitely not forsythia. Even if it was, I would
never
recommend hacking it to the ground.

I tend to agree with Escapee. To whack a forsythia to the ground sacrifices
the blooms for two years.

Shouldn't if you prune it *right* after it blooms since it blooms on
last season's wood.. which it would have grown after it was pruned..
would it not? Asking not arguing here.

I was kind of tongue in cheeking it on the whacking it down to the
ground.. if it were forsythia... through the story of heading for what
was here with the shovel and it being how I felt about it - I really
hate the stuff :-D So..guess I was flyin' too low there with that.
Usually I'm too hit in the head with it all. LOL

Janice

Copicing is fine if done properly. (copicing is
to cut something to the ground, also called stooling) If there are no
thorns, then it's a spirea and can be dug up now in early spring, trimmed
back a bit and replanted somewhere you want it.
madgardener who has done such things.

On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 09:55:45 -0500, Dawn opined:


Should I get underneath it and just start cutting out the dead canes?



Dawn



Yes, always prune out any dead wood from any plant, branches and limbs which
cross one another, or anything growing in toward the center should also come
out. After that, step away from the plant and prune it for shape, but don't
remove more than about a third. Rehab of a badly pruned or not pruned plant
takes a few seasons.

On Mon, 12 Apr 2004 10:26:11 -0600, Janice
opined:

Shouldn't if you prune it *right* after it blooms since it blooms on
last season's wood.. which it would have grown after it was pruned..
would it not? Asking not arguing here.

When you hack something to the ground, it takes all its energy to restore the
foliage. The following year, it may not have the energy to develop blooms.


I was kind of tongue in cheeking it on the whacking it down to the
ground.. if it were forsythia... through the story of heading for what
was here with the shovel and it being how I felt about it - I really
hate the stuff :-D So..guess I was flyin' too low there with that.
Usually I'm too hit in the head with it all. LOL

Janice

And people who know you know that. However, in a forum like this where there
are many transient posters, it doesn't translate well.