One of my books says that this needs pruning when young to avoid
becoming lank, and its growth (from the tips) confirms that. But
when, and how harshly?


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

The message
from (Nick Maclaren) contains these words:


One of my books says that this needs pruning when young to avoid
becoming lank, and its growth (from the tips) confirms that. But
when, and how harshly?


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.


The website, http://www.ag.auburn.edu/hort/landscape/338.html, has for
Koelreteria paniculata:

GROWTH HABIT: Grows 15' to 30' tall. Can be single or multi-trunked
(severe renewal prune when young).
This is unhelpfully vague but does suggest that harsh is OK.

I have a specimen which I bought cheap which has a very long bare trunk
and then a small but quite dense head of short branches which are still,
after four years, putting on only a small amount of growth. It's lanky
in the sense of being all thin trunk and not much else. Is that the kind
of lanky implied by your book, do you think?

I think mine had been in a pot for too long but it is at least holding
its own and I'm still hoping that it might just take off one day.

Janet G

In article ,
Janet Galpin writes:
|
| One of my books says that this needs pruning when young to avoid
| becoming lank, and its growth (from the tips) confirms that. But
| when, and how harshly?
|
| The website, http://www.ag.auburn.edu/hort/landscape/338.html, has for
| Koelreteria paniculata:
|
| GROWTH HABIT: Grows 15' to 30' tall. Can be single or multi-trunked
| (severe renewal prune when young).
| This is unhelpfully vague but does suggest that harsh is OK.

Yes, but when and how? Some things like the dormant season; others hate
it.

| I have a specimen which I bought cheap which has a very long bare trunk
| and then a small but quite dense head of short branches which are still,
| after four years, putting on only a small amount of growth. It's lanky
| in the sense of being all thin trunk and not much else. Is that the kind
| of lanky implied by your book, do you think?
|
| I think mine had been in a pot for too long but it is at least holding
| its own and I'm still hoping that it might just take off one day.

Mine is new, but its branches are shooting entirely from the tips.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

The message
from (Nick Maclaren) contains these words:


In article ,
Janet Galpin writes:
|
| One of my books says that this needs pruning when young to avoid
| becoming lank, and its growth (from the tips) confirms that. But
| when, and how harshly?
|
| The website, http://www.ag.auburn.edu/hort/landscape/338.html, has for
| Koelreteria paniculata:
|
| GROWTH HABIT: Grows 15' to 30' tall. Can be single or multi-trunked
| (severe renewal prune when young).
| This is unhelpfully vague but does suggest that harsh is OK.

Yes, but when and how? Some things like the dormant season; others hate
it.

Yes, quite. I offered it only for the harsh.

However, the RHS Pruning guide is a bit more helpful:

"Train as a central-leader standard, pruning when dormant, but do not
remove laterals until they begin to die back as a result of shading.
Never tip-prune to encourage dense growth".

It also says "Always choose a lanky, open young tree" which implies that
lanky is good

Janet G

In article ,
Janet Galpin writes:
|
| However, the RHS Pruning guide is a bit more helpful:
|
| "Train as a central-leader standard, pruning when dormant, but do not
| remove laterals until they begin to die back as a result of shading.
| Never tip-prune to encourage dense growth".
|
| It also says "Always choose a lanky, open young tree" which implies that
| lanky is good

Precisely the CONVERSE of what my Sunset book says :-(

I have tip-pruned one small branch, when the new shoots were c. 3" long,
as it was in the way. I shall see what happens.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.