Pinching Back Health of Tree Question

[source]

Hi guys

I just had a question. If I'm developing a new tree, and I am letting one leader grow out wildly at the top, while pinching back lower branches to prepare/develop them, does the pinching back of some branches affect the health negatively if a leader is being allowed to grow freely?

I was just wondering because last season was the first trunk chop so don't want to stress the tree (Japanese maple) unnecessarily. It looks very healthy so far. In my understanding as long as a leader is being allowed to grow wild that is allowing nutrients to flow freely through the tree which means it will retain vigour and health - therefore the pinching back of other branches won't negatively affect the trees health.

Is that correct?

Thanks guys

Daniel

 

[jk_lewis]

Yup. Trees are tougher than we give them credit for being.

 

[Eric Schrader]

Well, pinching is well-applied on Japanese maples. They are a vigorous species, particularly when young with few branches. You're correct about it only taking one escape branch to keep the metabolism in high gear. That's true on many species. The trick is to just make sure that the branches that you will be keeping later don't get too weak.

Once you get a set of fine branching on a maple you will sometimes not even need to pinch because the tree will send out leaves only rather than runners. But, that's because the tree is weak-ish, in that sweet spot between too vigorous and too weak where the fine branching stays alive, but the branching doesn't get too coarse because it's growing only slowly. Climate has a large impact on JM, they prefer that Japanese-esque summer - high humidity and rain during the hottest part of the year. They're harder to grow in the dry climate in California.

 

[Smoke]

Climate has a large impact on JM, they prefer that Japanese-esque summer - high humidity and rain during the hottest part of the year. They're harder to grow in the dry climate in California.

True that....