I cant get over how much it has grown in 4 years,now I see what I'm in for, I got mine on the clearance rack at walmart for 1.39 a year ago and it has already quadrupled in size. How much trimming did you do to yours? I'll be following your post to see what advice your given. I think it looks unique as it is.
Christine

Hi Christine. I only clip if it looks too bushy or uneven. It doesn't matter what time of year either. Maintenance is fairly easy except for water! It can't get enough. However, it got a little sad in the middle so I plucked leaves and stems off. I think she is GORGEOUS. It looks like a topiary tree now. I hope that it did not harm the plant to leave a bare stalk in the middle. We will see.
Carolina

Carolina,
That is a beautiful China Doll! I've had one for years also, and it was pretty nice until I had to leave it in someone else's care for a few months. It came home very sick, with yellow leaves and sparse growth and some frostbite. I cut it back pretty severely, and it took off again, much to my delight. Lately though, it was just too "leggy", so I cut it back again, and it is trying to bush out more.
I don't think it will harm the tree at all, that you took leaves and branches off of the center, but they likely won't grow back.
I searched for info on this forum, and there were a few good posts. One of them mentioned root pruning, which I've never heard of, so I will look into that. Mine needs to be repotted, I'm sure, as the soil has that "used" look. One poster said that summer is the best time to prune and repot, as the tree has more energy then.
I am inspired to see what I can do with my tree! I was seriously considering tossing it and starting over with a new one. Thank you for the inspiration!
Sue

Regular root maintenance is requisite if you want to keep your tree from a steady decline punctuated only by a brief return to something more like normal growth after each up-pot. I'll leave you a link to a thread about maintaining containerized trees for the long haul. It covers quite a bit of the ins & outs of keeping woody plants growing with good vitality.

If you have questions ....

Here is a link that might be useful: Click me and I'll take you there ....

Thank you so much, Al. I've seen several of your posts, and appreciate your helpfulness. I'll post a before picture just for fun. I have an organic potting soil, Garden Safe brand, and some perlite on hand. I also have Miracle Grow potting soil, but I'm not very impressed with it. I'm not sure what's available in our small town, but please tell me what to look for. :)
Sue

The more experienced a grower is, the better he/she is able to deal with poor soils. Inexperienced growers normally see poor results with poor soils, mediocre results with average soils, and good results with a good soil. Of course, this begs the question, "What is a 'good' soil?"

A good soil is one you can water to beyond saturation w/o having to worry that root function will be impaied for an extended period due to soggy soil conditions, or that root rot will develop for the same reasons. You should be able to saturate your soil any time you want or need to, and continue adding water to flush accumulating salts from the soil w/o concern for root health or function. If you can't, there is no doubt you leave a considerable measure of potential lying on the table.

Unfortunately, there is no plenitude of soils available that allow you to water correctly w/o concern. If you can find some pine or fir bark of an appropriate size, and some perlite, you can use those ingredients and a small amount of a peat-based soil to make a soil that offers your plants a much better opportunity to realize their built-in potential.

I don't know how interested you are in learning more, but the links I'll leave can make a major difference in how much you're able to get back in return for your efforts. I'll embed them so you can peruse them at your leisure. If you have any questions, it's likely I'll be able to answer them.

First, I'll leave a link to An Overview that should help you avoid most of the problems encountered by the average houseplant owner.

The next link is a more technical look at How Water Behaves in Soils. Understanding the concept outlined in the link will help you in all your gardening endeavors, and will help you understand why a soil might or might not be appropriate for growing in containers.

Good luck!

Al

Thank you so much, Al. I've read some of this, and bookmarked it so I can read it some more. It's very helpful. I've always had houseplants, and had reasonably good success with most of them. Once in awhile though, there's one that really stumps me, and now I can see that I just didn't know enough about some of these important things.

Sue