p_anova
Mame
Would now be ok to do a top chop on a Blue Atlas Cedar? It was de-burlapped and bonsai soiled early last year and has shown no signs of oll effect.
Height Reduction Blue Atlas Cedar
- Thread starter p_anova
- Start date
Would now be ok to do a top chop on a Blue Atlas Cedar? It was de-burlapped and bonsai soiled early last year and has shown no signs of oll effect.
sorce
Nonsense Rascal
You probably could, but since you don't really stand to lose anything waiting till after growth, I would wait.
You're probably better off heavily reducing what you will keep, to allow it more strength closer in. Start building your tree with the top as a health sacrifice.
If you keep that top top today, it shouldn't interfere with the tree you are building below, and the future cut won't get much bigger.
If you cut the top off, then soon have to cut the remaining keeper stuff to keep it close, you're left with little to keep it alive as you complete your design.
Best to keep the top I reckon.
What seems like a step back is a step forward 9 times out of 10.
Sorce
You're probably better off heavily reducing what you will keep, to allow it more strength closer in. Start building your tree with the top as a health sacrifice.
If you keep that top top today, it shouldn't interfere with the tree you are building below, and the future cut won't get much bigger.
If you cut the top off, then soon have to cut the remaining keeper stuff to keep it close, you're left with little to keep it alive as you complete your design.
Best to keep the top I reckon.
What seems like a step back is a step forward 9 times out of 10.
Sorce
sorce
Nonsense Rascal
I'd be in here right now.
Sorce
Sorce
p_anova
Mame
Thanks for the advice and I made the cuts. Any idea if the top would be a good candidate for an air layer? It is a lot of tree I will be chopping off and didn't know: 1. If the species air layered at all
2. When to start the air layer
sorce
Nonsense Rascal
I don't think they're easy to layer if possible, but rather than listen to people tell you not to try, I'd just grab the fattest remaining top shoot and give it a go.
Using the strongest shoot, when it's time to tame the top dominance a bit would be wise.
Test all the shoots in subsequent years.
The beauty of a "health sacrifice", is so long as the future wound isn't getting too big, and the growth isn't shading your future tree, it kinda doesn't matter if it dies, so keeping it mad healthy to do lots of experimenting is almost invited.
Sorce
Using the strongest shoot, when it's time to tame the top dominance a bit would be wise.
Test all the shoots in subsequent years.
The beauty of a "health sacrifice", is so long as the future wound isn't getting too big, and the growth isn't shading your future tree, it kinda doesn't matter if it dies, so keeping it mad healthy to do lots of experimenting is almost invited.
Sorce
Potawatomi13
Imperial Masterpiece
Agreed trunk chop and major branches growth before cuts can only add to trunks growth. If can leave upper trunk several years for this is all to the better
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.Potawatomi13
Imperial Masterpiece
"ARBORETUM IS BEHIND MY HOUSE" How amazing is that? Any time needing advice just climb over fence and ask
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Let’s not put the cart before the horse! Before we talk about chopping, you need to decide how tall you want this tree to be. And, how thick of a trunk do you want.
Then, we can take a look at what branches you have, and determine which are keepers, and which can be used as sacrifice branches.
What style do you want? Do you want taper?
They don’t back bud on old wood.
All these things go into the plan, and THEN you can think about pruning.
Something to bear in mind: When you are building a trunk and primary branches, maybe the heaviest branches should be sacrifice branches rather than primary (keeper) branches! The reason is if you have heavy branches that are, for example, half the thickness of the trunk, they look out of proportion. They make the trunk look thin. The best way to make the trunk look heavy is to have thin branches! That’s very important when designing conifers.
Another thing to keep in mind when picking primary branches is the angle they have coming off the trunk. Atlas Cedars look best when the branch come straight off the trunk, rather than grow up, and then bend down. The earlier the branches can be trained into position, the better. So, on that picture that Sorce posted with his suggested pruning, he suggested to prune the small branch, and keep the larger one on the right. Well, I might disagree. It’s hard to say without having the tree in front of me, but the keeper branch has two faults: 1) it’s very thick relative to the trunk; 2) it’s growing up at steep angle, and you’re not going to be able to bend it down to horizontal. I would agree that it’s on the outside of the curve, whereas the thinner one on the left is on the inside of the curve, and from that aspect, it’s in a better position. So, perhaps another side might be a better front?
And the lower trunk is awkward from this view. I think there’s a better front than what we have been shown.
Good luck with it!
Then, we can take a look at what branches you have, and determine which are keepers, and which can be used as sacrifice branches.
What style do you want? Do you want taper?
They don’t back bud on old wood.
All these things go into the plan, and THEN you can think about pruning.
Something to bear in mind: When you are building a trunk and primary branches, maybe the heaviest branches should be sacrifice branches rather than primary (keeper) branches! The reason is if you have heavy branches that are, for example, half the thickness of the trunk, they look out of proportion. They make the trunk look thin. The best way to make the trunk look heavy is to have thin branches! That’s very important when designing conifers.
Another thing to keep in mind when picking primary branches is the angle they have coming off the trunk. Atlas Cedars look best when the branch come straight off the trunk, rather than grow up, and then bend down. The earlier the branches can be trained into position, the better. So, on that picture that Sorce posted with his suggested pruning, he suggested to prune the small branch, and keep the larger one on the right. Well, I might disagree. It’s hard to say without having the tree in front of me, but the keeper branch has two faults: 1) it’s very thick relative to the trunk; 2) it’s growing up at steep angle, and you’re not going to be able to bend it down to horizontal. I would agree that it’s on the outside of the curve, whereas the thinner one on the left is on the inside of the curve, and from that aspect, it’s in a better position. So, perhaps another side might be a better front?
And the lower trunk is awkward from this view. I think there’s a better front than what we have been shown.
Good luck with it!
KiwiPlantGuy
Omono
Hi,
Well my idea maybe a little contrived, but here it is -
1. Remove all left three branches.
2. Bend/twist up the bottom right branch as the new leader (maybe contrived,man made)
3. Strip the main trunk up to the biggest next fork(3/4 up) as use this main trunk as your sacrifice for the next 5 plus years while building the whole tree down lower.
4. While keeping the bottom new branches and new trunk line in check, you grow the sacrifice and prune only to let light in to keep the bottom well alive.
5. Also if you want a more compact lesser size trunk, use my idea, but cut/chop the trunk now.
My 5 cents, Charles
Well my idea maybe a little contrived, but here it is -
1. Remove all left three branches.
2. Bend/twist up the bottom right branch as the new leader (maybe contrived,man made)
3. Strip the main trunk up to the biggest next fork(3/4 up) as use this main trunk as your sacrifice for the next 5 plus years while building the whole tree down lower.
4. While keeping the bottom new branches and new trunk line in check, you grow the sacrifice and prune only to let light in to keep the bottom well alive.
5. Also if you want a more compact lesser size trunk, use my idea, but cut/chop the trunk now.
My 5 cents, Charles
p_anova
Mame
I'll give it a try and see what happens. Thanks dude
As you can see, I already made the cuts suggested by Sorce. I was planning on cutting at the red line eventually and turning the strong right branch into the new leader and developing that. I think this is what you are suggesting as well. I also wanted to try and air layer above it as well since there is so much tree left.....probably in stages.
Attachments
Ouch!
p_anova
Mame
Too drastic of a cut you think?
Well I said that pretty rapidly, but a huge branch on top and a branch 1/2 of that down low, I'm not sure what ur going to do to claim victory here. I didn't like the small branch on the left to start with. Tough choices OMO.
