We have just moved into a house with a very overgrown garden
and my mum and me dont know anything about plants. There is
a willow - i think - tree that looks as if it has been
chopped off half way up and there is a lot of thinner
branches growing from it. My mum says that it has to be
kept small because it blocks out the sun but we dont know
when we can cut the branches off and not kill the tree. Can
you help me.

Thomas.

If it is a willow (ask neighbours or borrow tree book from library for
identification) they can be regularly trimmed (coppiced) almost back to ground
level if necesary and will regrow. Best time would be Autumn though.

Alison

I suspect it is a willow thats been kept small as is my neighbours
........just trim it right back every autumn .......you will find it nigh
impossible to kill it
"Thomas Ashton" wrote in message
...
We have just moved into a house with a very overgrown garden
and my mum and me dont know anything about plants. There is
a willow - i think - tree that looks as if it has been
chopped off half way up and there is a lot of thinner
branches growing from it. My mum says that it has to be
kept small because it blocks out the sun but we dont know
when we can cut the branches off and not kill the tree. Can
you help me.

Thomas.

I suspect it is a willow thats been kept small as is my neighbours
........just trim it right back every autumn .......you will find it nigh
impossible to kill it
"Thomas Ashton" wrote in message
...
We have just moved into a house with a very overgrown garden
and my mum and me dont know anything about plants. There is
a willow - i think - tree that looks as if it has been
chopped off half way up and there is a lot of thinner
branches growing from it. My mum says that it has to be
kept small because it blocks out the sun but we dont know
when we can cut the branches off and not kill the tree. Can
you help me.

Thomas.

bnd777 wrote in message ...
I suspect it is a willow thats been kept small as is my neighbours
.......just trim it right back every autumn .......you will find it
nigh
impossible to kill it


I've taken a 15ft tortuous willow down to 6" this year as it was in the
wrong place, took a load of cuttings first, the stump keeps throwing up
new shoots which I am rubbing off until I can remove it.

Mike
www.british-naturism.org.uk

bnd777 wrote in message ...
I suspect it is a willow thats been kept small as is my neighbours
.......just trim it right back every autumn .......you will find it
nigh
impossible to kill it


I've taken a 15ft tortuous willow down to 6" this year as it was in the
wrong place, took a load of cuttings first, the stump keeps throwing up
new shoots which I am rubbing off until I can remove it.

Mike
www.british-naturism.org.uk

In message , Michael
Berridge writes

bnd777 wrote in message ...
I suspect it is a willow thats been kept small as is my neighbours
.......just trim it right back every autumn .......you will find it
nigh
impossible to kill it


I've taken a 15ft tortuous willow down to 6" this year as it was in the
wrong place, took a load of cuttings first, the stump keeps throwing up
new shoots which I am rubbing off until I can remove it.

I removed a big willow stump about a month ago.

It's still siting in the garden awaiting removal - the stump is
sprouting again.
--
Chris French and Helen Johnson, Leeds
urg Suppliers and References FAQ:
http://www.familyfrench.co.uk/garden/urgfaq/index.html

In message , AlisonAPg
writes
If it is a willow (ask neighbours or borrow tree book from library for
identification) they can be regularly trimmed (coppiced) almost back to ground
level if necesary and will regrow. Best time would be Autumn though.

Yep, hard to kill a Willow.

The willow has currently been pollarded - which is like coppicing, but
they are cut back at a higher height. It is a a traditional way to
manage Willow -you can often see old willows by rivers that used to be
pollarded, though often aren't anymore - they have a big 'lump' where
the pollarding used to take place.

Personally i don't like it in a garden as I think it looks pretty ugly,
but you can continue with it if you want. you don't have to cut it back
hard each time though, you could remove just some of the branches each
year - say over a 4 year cycle so that the tree keeps some cover, all
the time, but has got some new growth coming on and doesn't get to big.

Autumn/winter is the best time for this, but Willows are so tough ands
easy going you could do it now if they want to get on top of it now.
--
Chris French and Helen Johnson, Leeds
urg Suppliers and References FAQ:
http://www.familyfrench.co.uk/garden/urgfaq/index.html

Thanks for the replies. It is definately a willow, actually
a twisted willow. So we are going to take some cuttings and
hopefully some will live and can replace the big one if we
kill it. I'm not sure how long it takes for them to grow
but at least there will be something to take its place.

thanks again
Thomas