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| Hi Again,
To keep everyone thinking over the winter I have anothe question that has been nagging at me for the last few years. It seems all of my property is part shade with poor soil. I have Red Twigs (RT) growing under these conditions, and they are growing very slowly, which is expected. I have been reluctant to prune these for fear of setting back the plants growth under what may already be less than ideal growing conditions. These particular RTs have been installed for about 5 years and are about 5.5 feet tall and growing parallel (1.0 foot away) to my neighbors columnar arb. screen (which helps to provide the shade). Do the pruning "rules" change for these conditions? I do like the height of the RTs now, but I would like for them to put out more branches. TIA |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Mon, Feb 15, 10 at 12:07
| it is not uncommon for shrubs to throw up what appears to be bare leaders one year .... and add the secondary branching the second ... other than that.. a pic would be worth a thousand words... i am having a hard time understanding where you want to go with all this ... MOST shrubs are not pruned or tip pruned.. to make them fill out.... ken |
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| Redtwig dogwoods need periodic pruning to keep them red. Since brightest stem color is on new growth shrubs with a lot of old wood will be brown with red twigs at the top. Every spring I take out about 1/3 of the oldest growth. This keeps the larger size I want and does not overly stress the plant. I'm not sure shade is your problem. Mine grow in partial shade (morning sun only) and do just fine. The issue might be a combination of poor soil and dry conditions. Red twigs do not thrive under these conditions. |
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- Posted by isabella__ma z5_MA (My Page) on Mon, Feb 15, 10 at 19:30
| Here's the pic of the area from Nov 2009. Unfortunately it's of the area and not of the RTs directly. The RTs in question are growing up the neighbors shrub wall. The other grey stalks are from wine&rose, annabelle, a forsynthia, and the other compact RT in the kill zone. I only supply supplemental irrigation during the summer if I see the vinca minor starting to wilt. The soil textures equate to a sandy loam. My question re-phrased is can I prune these growing in part-shade, average moisture as aggresively as ones growing in ideal conditions? They have taken awhile to establish as strongly as they are now, and I'm afraid of setting the plant back (i.e losing my shrubs display for a few years).
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- Posted by gardengal48 PNW zone 8 (My Page) on Tue, Feb 16, 10 at 11:43
| I'm surprised by your difficulty. Might you have a named form that produces smaller growth? There are a number of dwarf/compact or smaller growing cultivars. Cornus sericea is an extremely adaptable shrub and will grow well in a rather wide range of condtions - poor soil and fertile, shade and sun, droughty conditions as well as regular moisture and even boggy conditions. I'm not sure there are ideal conditions for this plant :-)) I consider it a go-to shrub for difficult conditions and have placed it successfully in sites that fit all of these criteria. I've approached pruning a couple of ways. My more mature plants get the 1/3 old stem removal that felisa explains but I've also done the full cutback coppicing of smaller and younger plants. IME, the coppicing will result in heavier branching (that's pretty much the purpose of coppicing) but it will take awhile before the plant regains its former stature. The attached link also recommends coppicing to encourage vigorous stem growth. |
Here is a link that might be useful: US Forest Service - Cornus sericea
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- Posted by isabella__ma z5_MA (My Page) on Tue, Feb 16, 10 at 17:08
| Thanks All! That's encouraging. I'll try the 1/3 approach on them and see how they respond this year. I'm not a horticulturist, so my estimate of the growth may not be more lay and inaccurate. I have similar shrubs and other RT genus/cultivars growing in other locations in more sun. I'll have to compare the growth to those for a better gauge. |
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- Posted by prairiegirlz5 (My Page) on Wed, Feb 24, 10 at 23:32
| Isabella~That bed looks very crowded, maybe it's not, but from the angle the photo is taken, it looks very crowded. Do they really have two dozen arborvitae planted one foot apart as a backdrop? When shrubs are planted as though they're herbaceous perennials, without regard to their need for room to grow, they compete for light, water and, especially, nutrients from the soil. These conditions can certainly lead to poor growth. I was surprised that anyone would have any trouble growing RT dogwoods, but perhaps that is the contributing factor. They may respond well to extra organic matter in the form of mulch and more water too. But the 1/3 pruning of old stems (remove maybe two or three of the oldest stems, all the way to the base of the shrub) should do the trick to rejuvenate them. |
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- Posted by isabella__ma z5_MA (My Page) on Thu, Feb 25, 10 at 6:27
| Prairegilz - well I guess the arb screen is just different views/goals on what makes for an pleasing landscape. I tend to go for shrubs/trees and others like lawns with traditional foundation planting scheme. Not a statement about anything other than people will landscape to meet their own goals. My shrubs were there first -then the arb screen was put in. I believe they (arbs) are about 2-feet apart. That particular photo is across the front garden bed, so it seems more crowded than it is; however, as noted, the planting density is less than ideally recommended. Maybe the fact that the plants are growing as well as they are is a testiment to the RT's abiltiy to survive in it's environment. I have others in more sun and much better spacing that I'll be comparing them to. I was hoping that they would race to the sun ahead of the arbs, but so far it's been a break even race! I do really enjoy these RTs as they are such a great and versatile plant and a comforting reminder of spring when I look at them on snowy day. |
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- Posted by prairiegirlz5 (My Page) on Thu, Feb 25, 10 at 15:42
| isabella~I've told you before I like it, and now that I see it I like it even better. Your red-twigged dogwoods with the hydrangea and vinca make a lovely winter display. I too like shrubs for the presence they lend to a plant grouping. I know you've experimented with other shrubs for this area. Forsythia, weigela and nandina all competing with the existing plants, along with the arborvitaes, may just be too much, that's the take home part of my first post. I meant no offense. Due to my own enthusiasm, I have needed to make several groupings out of what I thought would look great in one bed. It's an ongoing process for me. I have found that sometimes, less is more, and I have had to move things to where they can be appreciated in their own right. Hope that helps. |
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- Posted by isabella__ma z5_MA (My Page) on Fri, Feb 26, 10 at 5:25
| Hi Pairegirl, I just added the history behind some of the placement of the arbs and RTs for conversation purposes -- no offense taken at all! I do appreciate any suggestions and feedback on the landscape. The need to move plants and more especially the willingness to move plants is something that I have become more comfortable with as the landscape has matured. Getting a grasp on spacing and how the temporal changes in the landscape is my new challenge. |
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