pruning

what mistakes have you made pruning and what successes ? how did you learn to be
better at this ? did you consult a reference for pruning trees and shrubs? I did study
bonsai a little and took a few classes. my success with bonsai was limited to ficus
and they did not seem to like little pots of sparse bonsai soil. by our cabin we have
many wild choke cherry and pin cherry trees. also to help white pine (strobus) get
above the deer brouse we have pruned them for upward growth by pruning out
low branches and to concentrate growth in the leader. some trees in nature look
like they would have benefited from some pruning , some have huge branches and
fall in a wind storm. jim

Actually, I'm an anti-pruner - I try to encourage folks to plant stuff that actually fits where it is planted or is of a naturally appealing shape. I lived in the Tucson/ Phoenix area for a long time and saw so many trees and shrubs turned into geometric shapes or huge plants kept into these leetle tiny shrubby things ...

So, sorry, I bet there's a lot of people who are really good at this stuff - there is an art to a good pruning, I know.

i used to think I was antiprune until I went out to prune some apple trees.
I just moved here 1 1/2 yr ago. One apple tree's trunk grew together into a braid!
when they grow into each other or branches rub together, they make a way for fungus, disease and insects to get started.
of course you prune for bigger fruit, it lets more air circulation and sunshine in.
after you get up so high they usually spread out more and nature's way is to let them blow and rub against each other until they fall out.
I think pines eventually lose the bottom branches when they get older.
and of couse you prune to be able to walk under etc. mainly you prune broken branches, any inward pointing branches that are eventually going to grow back inward and into the trunck, or any branches that are going to grow into others and rub.when you start you'll get the hang of it.

I think that there are many different ways to prune, everything from shearing to bonsai. Moreover, there are many different styles within any given school of thought about pruning.

It really depends on the look that you're trying to acheive.

I think you just need to read and think a bit and then start off slowly. Pruning in the company of others with more experience than you have is a great way to learn.

You can always take more off but you can't put it back on (in most cases).

it's like a bad haircut, it'll grow back

Mmm, respectfully, Len, that's not always true in the case of trees - once topped, they're permanently disfigured, assuming they have a strong terminal shoot (I think that's what they call them? Help?). But I'm sure there's a lot of shrubs that would never get planted at all unless they were maintained in some kind of form.

Why is it that people seem to like to do that particularly to Mulberry trees?

I am of the school that some trees and shrubs need it, others don't. I was always afraid of pruning until I took both a pruning class and a 2 month bonsai class quite a number of years back. Before that, I did not have the confidence to prune, and mostly I didn't. I didn't know the difference between a "heading" cut and a "thinning" cut. But both of those classes tremendously increased my confidence in pruning. And now it is one of the most enjoyable garden activities that I do. And often it can be done in the dead of winter which is certainly a less busy garden season for me.

If you are lucky enough to live near a good botanical/horticultural gardens, many of these have educational programs, and they are often useful in getting started in the right direction. If not, find a japanese maple in your garden with too much overgrown twiggy growth at the center, and take some of that out to expose the main branch structure of the central part of the tree. (Only don't do it now unless the plants are fully leafed out, because JMs 'bleed' badly when pruned as the sap is rising just before and at bud break). Just following a few basic rules, eliminating dead wood and crossing branches and water shoots/suckers, will often improve the appearance of many woody plants. And just practicing with some basics will give you more confidence.

I don't in general like sheared plants with a few exceptions, but instead follow the school that what you are trying to do is to enhance the natural form and 'inner grace' of that particular plant. You can't make every tree into a pagoda dogwood, but thoughtful pruning can indeed make many trees and shrubs more attractive (and when well done, healthier too...).

Sorry pagancat, I didn't think that topping was considered pruning Ha!
I haven't a clue why people do that. Our power company sent us a letter that said they don't top trees anymore they cut the whole tree down and put a root killer on it.
But then I don't know why people plant trees under power lines either!

...I didn't think that topping was considered pruning ...

LOL - okay, you and I agree on that - and I can guess why they plant under the lines, but it still doesn't make it very smart....

however I did 2 weeks ago take some honeysuckle bushes to a foot off the ground
now the new shoots completely cover the stumps and are 2' high. they're coming back with a vengeance. but I was thinking trees.lol.