So, are you going to cut the candles this year? It’s the right time!
So cutting back hard is not timed the same as decandling? Is it wise to cut back late summer? Buds wil not extent anymore that year, but wil start to grow next spring? That wil be needle buds, so no decandling next summer. How do we prevent new growth from being to vigorous?Ok, to build foliage closer to the trunk, there’s a couple ways to do it: one is to let it grow and get strong, and then cut back hard! I believe that what you are attempting.
Usually, the cutting back method cuts back into old wood, that still has healthy needles to get it to pop needle buds. You might get some to actually pop and grow if done over the summer, usually it sets the buds in the fall, and they grow the following spring. But, you fave to wait an additional year before you can decandle them.So cutting back hard is not timed the same as decandling? Is it wise to cut back late summer? Buds wil not extent anymore that year, but wil start to grow next spring? That wil be needle buds, so no decandling next summer. How do we prevent new growth from being to vigorous?
@Adair M , these questions come up, having a pair of scissors in my hand to cut back my small black pine!
Thanks again Adair! I'll wait till end of summer to cut back into old needles!Usually, the cutting back method cuts back into old wood, that still has healthy needles to get it to pop needle buds. You might get some to actually pop and grow if done over the summer, usually it sets the buds in the fall, and they grow the following spring. But, you fave to wait an additional year before you can decandle them.
I have not done that very often. Only on rough stock that has fairly large, long branches from being grown in the ground. And then, only once. After that, I use decandling as it’s more controllable.
By the way, my avatar tree was cut back hard this past March. So, I’m not going to decandle this year. In the fall, I will rewrite it. The cutback it received is a maintenance cutback, not a developmental cutback. It was highly refined with a lot of twigs and short internodes. But even with annual decandling, the branches had gotten too long. So, it was time to shorten all the branches, cutting back to interior twigs and branches. Since prior to the cutback, most if the remaining shoots had been interior shoots, they were not as strong as the ones that were removed. By not decandling them this year, they will have a chance to get strong, and I can resume my usual practice of decandling next year. The spring shoots they put out this year were only about 1/2 to 3/4 inch, many less than that! I still have lots of shoots so the tree is very healthy.
Well, you already noticed it: the bottom half of the tree is still too dense. Thin it out some more. You could start by pulling (or cutting off) the needles that are growing and/or hanging down. You can remove those from the upper part of the tree as well!Oh well! Actually looking at the image "proper", I see I should have probably thinned some spots out a little more thoroughly...….Happy Friday!!!!
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Let the derision commence!!!!!!!!