wire in winter

[Dave E]

from what i've been reading you shouldn't wire in winter,but i also have read winter is a good time to wire when the leaves aren't in the way.
i figure the ones that would give me the right advice would be you b nuts.
i have a couple acer campestre,and possibly some elm that i'd like to wire branches on, as well as some 1st year jbp seedlings that i'd like to wire the trunks.
i'm in zone 7(although this winter is more like a zone 8)

 

[markyscott]

from what i've been reading you shouldn't wire in winter,but i also have read winter is a good time to wire when the leaves aren't in the way.
i figure the ones that would give me the right advice would be you b nuts.
i have a couple acer campestre,and possibly some elm that i'd like to wire branches on, as well as some 1st year jbp seedlings that i'd like to wire the trunks.
i'm in zone 7(although this winter is more like a zone 8)

People do different things and it really depends on the species.

Broadleaf trees in development I wire in the late spring early summer as the leaves harden off. The advantage is that the branches can get brittle when they harden and it's difficult to put movement in the branches in the winter. I wire and dewire trees several times during the growing season. Wire needs to be carefully monitored as it will cut in quickly. I remove all wire in the fall and then cut back in winter. Here's an example before cutback:



I sometimes do a bit of winter wiring on deciduous trees, but just minor adjustments.

Don't wire junipers this way. Junipers camdium separates easily during the growing season. Wait until fall to wire them and save major branch adjustments for the winter. Make jins in the spring or summer.

Don't wire pines like this. To easy to knock buds off during the growing season. Wait until fall or winter to wire them. On black pines you also have a little window after you decandle.

Scott

 

[JudyB]

I wire everything I have in the winter. Some things like my elm, it's the only time I can wire unless I defoliate in the growing season. I do have a solid protection scheme, but I'm in zone 5. I would imagine in zone 7, that you wouldn't have much trouble with it.

 

[Nybonsai12]

I wire everything I have in the winter. Some things like my elm, it's the only time I can wire unless I defoliate in the growing season. I do have a solid protection scheme, but I'm in zone 5. I would imagine in zone 7, that you wouldn't have much trouble with it.

i know I've asked you this once before but I can't find it. what temp range is your greenhouse kept at?

I ask because last year's brutal winter in my uninsulated garage things were freezing solid. This year it's insulated and I'm monitoring temps to see what things are in comparison with Outside. Nothing will ever freeze now that it's insulated, but because of it, I'd have to shuffle trees in and out more with the crazy 40 degree temp swings we are having here. I'm trying to figure out what I can wire/Prune safely and offer protection.

 

[Dav4]

I wire everything whenever I have the time to do so. With that being said, it's a good rule of thumb not to create severe bends in branches or trunks either when sub freezing or excessively hot weather is anticipated. I've had good success wiring junipers, pines and yews in fall, winter and early spring...and pretty crappy luck wiring them heavily during a GA heat wave. I wire my maples in spring just before bud break.

 

[Dave E]

thanks for the responses

 

[sorce]

For me.... It goes like this...

Proper technique first...or close enough to know your wiring is not damaging the tree.

Convenience...when there are no leaves.

Necessity....like baby bending stuff that bristles fast.

Safety....far as winter goes....I look at the little V between larger wire and branch...
Like a place that freeze thaw cycles will cause damage on New branches or trees with thin skin.
Worse, snowload, a wired branch could be set in a rather stiff position, where your larger branches won't give, so the tips take the load and have to bend, or break if it really cold!

Besides don't let it bite in too much!

Those are the only Hard and Fast rules I could see.

Sorce

 

[Nwaite]

Wow all over the place with this one huh..

Soooo just kinda experiment and see what works for your trees in your area?

 

[Dave E]

Wow all over the place

yeah i'm finding that to be the case when i research bonsai -do this,no don't do this.
at least on b nut i feel like i have a good idea who gives good advice-and i think i got some good advice

 

[Paradox]

I think (someone correct if I am wrong), that you should avoid wiring (or at least bending) if it is close to or below freezing because branches can be more brittle then?

 

[crust]

I wire maintenance everything I can in the winter. A must for me because of time resources. Wiring is a very big word though. For me--I have a lot of trees that have been in training a long time so wiring them means gentle twig correction and occasional large branch correction--usually subtle and usually does not include any crunching noises. This is maintenance wiring. Design or re-design wiring (heavy bending, notching, crunching) is rarely done-- I have done it without apparent problems but usually avoid it in the dead of winter--I find that spring is bad time for this because the tree has become gushy and slips and tears easier (larches cedars junipers). Summer seems the best for that. I have adopted the process of applying the wire and if I have a bend that seems risky I just bend everything else and save that one for later--at least the wire is on.

 

[Adair M]

I do what Markyscott's does.

For deciduous, i.e. "Hardwood trees", the time to wire them is when the shoots are young, a couple weeks old, while they are still green, have leaves on them and before they have lignified. The wire only stays on for a few weeks, then it gets removed, and the branch cut back. When new shoots extend, wire it again...

Hardwood trees are "grown" into shape. Not shaped after they are grown. Junipers and pines can be shaped after they have grown.

Most people erroneously try to wire hardwood trees and bend old wood and shape them like they would a pine or juniper. It doesn't work very well. Hardwood trees have hard wood! That cracks rather than bends. The way to shape them is when the shoots are soft, BEFORE they harden. This means spring and summer is the right time to shape them.

 

[crust]

I think (someone correct if I am wrong), that you should avoid wiring (or at least bending) if it is close to or below freezing because branches can be more brittle then?

Branches do not freeze or seem stiffer in the winter to me and I think this is a myth. The problem is if you break stuff--will the fact it is not growing make the recovery less likely--and that depends on degree of damage and the species, protection etc.

 

[Dave E]

so if it's a warm winter day or couple days(40's) than most likely the frozen branch thing isn't a factor and i should be good?

 

[Dave E]

i think my main concern was more about the stress put on the tree.

 

[JudyB]

i know I've asked you this once before but I can't find it. what temp range is your greenhouse kept at?

I keep the air temps between 28 and 40 if possible. This year that has been... interesting. I've had to make ice blocks in buckets outside, and smaller blocks in the freezer, and keep rotating them. I don't worry if the warm snap is only a day or two, only a few days or more. There are only a couple of my plants that want to go early and I put the smaller blocks on them to keep them cooler.
I also keep many (most) of my trees on heat mats. They are set for 32 on the cold side, and 40 for the plants that want it warmer. The trees that I want to protect inside but want to really keep cold, I just don't place on the heat mats, and they freeze on a regular basis in my winters here.

Crust's comment is particularly important, this is a good caveat. You must be very careful, some trees will not heal if you snap a branch like they most possibly would in a summer situation.

 

[Dav4]

so if it's a warm winter day or couple days(40's) than most likely the frozen branch thing isn't a factor and i should be good?

Bending a branch damages the cambium, which in turn, makes that branch more prone to drying out. The more severe the bend, the more damage, and the higher the risk of drying out in unfavorable conditions, like when it's very cold and dry. This risk remains until the tree starts to grow over the damaged areas. Again, if the tree is going to be outside for the remainder of the winter, I wouldn't bend too severely. Feel free to wire it out now, but hold off on cambium busting bends until the tree is growing more...my 0.02.

 

[jeremy_norbury]

Branches do not freeze or seem stiffer in the winter to me and I think this is a myth. The problem is if you break stuff--will the fact it is not growing make the recovery less likely--and that depends on degree of damage and the species, protection etc.

Certainly sounds very very plausible.

 

[markyscott]

i think my main concern was more about the stress put on the tree.

What kind of tree do you want to wire?

Scott

 

[Dave E]

What kind of tree do you want to wire?

Scott

a field maple i want to wire some branches down,as well as put some bends in the trunks of some 1st year jbp seedlings.
and i have some elms that i may want to do to