I have a large (~25 ft. tall) Dawn Redwood. It seems to be doing pretty well, except most branches and especially the large ones have leaves only at the ends (the half close to the trunk is bald). Any idea what the problem is? Should we prune the redwood?
Dawn redwood
Are the leaves on your tree healthy and green? Do you see active bright green growing tips? I suspect what you are seeing is the natural growth of the tree. Its been my experience with these trees that, as they age, they do grow sparse in the center.
I wouldn't prune it as once you prune, you will have to prune and prune to maintain the shape. They are a little odd growing but that's their beauty. When your tree is 100 feet tall, you will wish you'd left the pruners in the garage. Take out dead or diseased branches only.
Daisy
I too have a Dawn Redwood approaching 25' and it exhibits a similar growth pattern to what you've described. More mature specimens than mine exhibit the same thing. In general, trees do not produce leaves close to the center as it would take more energy to make them than they'd gain from having them.
On a side note, how old is your tree?
Ah-ha! And hence your avatar.
I had one that was nearly 50 feet tall. My neighbor, who was not a lumber jack, cut down a tree in his yard which fell into my yard and hit the Dawn Redwood squarely. It was impressive to see how many ways a tree can shatter.
The good news is that he didn't take out the Bunya Bunya or the Monkey Puzzle. Dawn Redwoods are extremely fast growers.
Daisy
Oh man, that's a crying shame about your DR. Geez, I would have been heartbroken. I used to have a sequoiadendron giganteum also but decided to cut it down due to an incurable fungal issue.
Yes, I assumed it would regrow from the shattered stump but it never did. My husband cut a piece about 12 inches wide and 12 inches tall. I sanded and oiled it and now it lives on the front porch.
At least you've got something. Our started growing cones last year and I was so excited. I planted it in spring of 2010 and it was a 6" tall stick from Arbor Day. It is now probably about 25+ feet tall. I just noticed this year that I can now see the top of it over our house if I stand all the way out in the back yard. I think the trunk last fall was 9" in diameter.
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