Spruce: how literal is the "one injury per season" advice?

[Rambles]

This question is admitedly born of my anticipation, but please humor me.

I got a picea abies "Thumbelina" spruce earlier this year from a local nursery. It is about 6 inches tall, and 10 inches wide, with a low, round growth habit.

It has been growing quite well this season, but it very root bound in a fine-bark nursery mix.

All I've done to it at this point is removes dead material from the interior to give it air and let me see the branch structure. Not a prize winner, with it's reverse taper and 3-4 branch joints, but it looks like it will be fun to work on.

So, My plan had been to to a half-bareroot this winter/spring into good soil, followed by the second half the following year.

That said, would there be any harm in clipping out the weak shoots this winter and do some light thinning?

This is my first spruce, and admittedly maybe not the best choice for my first rodeo, so I don't have a sense for how burly or delicate they are.

 

[Rambles]

 

[sorce]

I'm totally repotting some spruce in the summer.
Reckon to the sound of leftover fireworks.

Sorce

 

[PiñonJ]

This question is admitedly born of my anticipation, but please humor me.

I got a picea abies "Thumbelina" spruce earlier this year from a local nursery. It is about 6 inches tall, and 10 inches wide, with a low, round growth habit.

It has been growing quite well this season, but it very root bound in a fine-bark nursery mix.

All I've done to it at this point is removes dead material from the interior to give it air and let me see the branch structure. Not a prize winner, with it's reverse taper and 3-4 branch joints, but it looks like it will be fun to work on.

So, My plan had been to to a half-bareroot this winter/spring into good soil, followed by the second half the following year.

That said, would there be any harm in clipping out the weak shoots this winter and do some light thinning?

This is my first spruce, and admittedly maybe not the best choice for my first rodeo, so I don't have a sense for how burly or delicate they are.

Don't know about your cultivar, but my P. abies has been pretty tough. You can re-pot it this fall (leave 4-6 weeks until first anticipated hard freeze). Being nursery stock, the root ball is probably mostly roots. You don't need to half-bare-root, just reduce it. Next spring, you can prune it and wire, if you want to. Do the spring work when the buds are swelling, but not open. And don't forget to fertilize!

 

[just.wing.it]

I have 2 dwarf birdsnest spruces (picea abies nidiformis).
Gonna reply one this summer to see how it reacts, gonna wait till growth hardens off.
And I have done significant trimming this spring, it's still growing like mad.

 

[Vance Wood]

The answer to your original question really boils down to where do you live and under what conditions are you able to cultivate your trees. I have found over the years that most people keep their Spruce in circumstances that are too hot or too sunny during the heat of the day.

If you can control that you can do a lot to a Spruce.

 

[GrimLore]

All I've done to it at this point is removes dead material from the interior to give it air and let me see the branch structure. Not a prize winner, with it's reverse taper and 3-4 branch joints, but it looks like it will be fun to work on.

For mounding it is a good choice as it will produce a much stiffer trunk and branch structure then many other mounding types. Tough as nails too - takes Zone 3 without a problem in the ground but potted 5 is secure.
One thing you must realize is these really grow SLOW. So when you thin it out for health/light just take what is needed, no more. As far as repotting Spruce goes I concur with @sorce on the Summer approach in cooler Zones. They throw new growth in Spring and when the new growth is nearly the same color as the old growth works best for me. Not certain why but it is so.
In Spring however I would do as another stated here and just reduce the root mass and repot. Bare rooting these often nets bad results

Grimmy

 

[PiñonJ]

The answer to your original question really boils down to where do you live and under what conditions are you able to cultivate your trees. I have found over the years that most people keep their Spruce in circumstances that are too hot or too sunny during the heat of the day.

If you can control that you can do a lot to a Spruce.

Spruce like full sun. If someone in northern latitudes is having problems with summer heat, they're not watering often enough.

 

[Vance Wood]

If someone in any latitude is having trouble with a Spruce turning brown odds are it is too hot and getting too much sun.

 

[PiñonJ]

If someone in any latitude is having trouble with a Spruce turning brown odds are it is too hot and getting too much sun.

Too much heat is not the same thing as too much sun. We have the most intense sunlight in the country and my spruces spend at least 7 hours in direct sun. They also get watered 3 times a day in summer, mostly because it's so dry here.

 

[sorce]

I can see all of it here...

I go full sun.

Mad water...

Mad! Mad water!

But Yeah..
Less sun could work too..

FTR...
I have never repotted a spruce..
In summer or otherwise.

Thrown a bunch out...

Sorce

 

[Vance Wood]

I have fund that a Spruce put into stress appreciates a bit of dappled cool shade. I have done this a number of times.

 

[just.wing.it]

Hmmmm... I guess spruces are very adaptable.
I have one of mine out back with all my other trees, and is in the shade at the peak heat of the day.
My other one is out front and is blasted by full sun all day.
I haven't seen any noticeable difference between the two, fwiw.

 

[Rambles]

So, pot into good soil now, dappled shade/protection from heat, and should be good for some light winter/spring trimming. I apprrciate the help.

 

[sorce]

now

After father's day...
The waning moon only lasts 2 more days.

Maybe better July. 8-14ish.

Maybe later still up there!

Sorce

 

[Giga]

I do most my work on a healthy spruce in the dead of winter, repot in early spring, then candle pinch right before they start to harden off. Pretty ez really. You have to understand what your tree is telling you first before any work is done. My tree's get full sun(8hrs) and and grow very well. I've never put them in the shade and water twice a day, gets upper 90's in the summer and i've never had an issue

 

[PiñonJ]

I do most my work on a healthy spruce in the dead of winter, repot in early spring, then candle pinch right before they start to harden off. Pretty ez really. You have to understand what your tree is telling you first before any work is done. My tree's get full sun(8hrs) and and grow very well. I've never put them in the shade and water twice a day, gets upper 90's in the summer and i've never had an issue

Timing of pinching depends what you're trying to accomplish. If you pinch buds as they're opening, that stimulates back buds to extend when you're in refinement. If you prune new shoots as they harden off, that stimulates formation of back buds when you're in development.

 

[M. Frary]

Timing of pinching depends what you're trying to accomplish. If you pinch buds as they're opening, that stimulates back buds to extend when you're in refinement. If you prune new shoots as they harden off, that stimulates formation of back buds when you're in development.

And if you cut back into last year's growth it will back bud even better.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

@Rambles - you're in Eugene OR, a very mild year round climate. Nothing like Chicago, or Michigan. We're always either a lot hotter or much, much colder than your area. Maybe a week or two in spring and autumn our weather is similar. Check the Pacific Northwest Bonsai artists and see what they have to say. Mike Hagadorn, Ryan Neil, Knight, Dan Robinson, the current curator at the Pacific Bonsai Museum. Or touch base with the SF crowd, Jonas Dupuich, Boon, and a host of others. All have experience with spruce in a climate similar to yours.

 

[Leo in N E Illinois]

I do want to add that there really is no such thing as a "gentle" repot. You really don't want to disturb the roots of most trees more than once every other year. So don't do a light root prune and then follow that in 5 months with a "regular repot". Get enough work done when you repot that you can leave it alone for 2 or 3 years.