|
| I am hoping there is someone who can help with this. We bought two Mediterranean, or Italian, cypress trees especially for their architectural value to grow in between two windows against the white wall of our house. They are varied in size and the larger of the two had its top slightly bent to one side when we bought it. The garden shop assured us that it would straighten up when it was planted, that it had been bent out of shape during shipment. the top was not broken, just bent. We planted them both last fall and with all the rain we have had this spring they have already grown about 12". We had staked them both, supporting the top of the larger one so that it would get the idea that it had to grow straight up, but with the new growth it now has three leaders at the top which are tending to fan out. This is not what we want, we want these trees to grow in a very thin column shape, we know we will have to shear them to get this effect but what do we do with the three leaders? Is it OK to cut off two and the remaining one will then grow straight up? I tried cutting the support holding the top up but with the weight of the new growth and three leaders it toppled over to one side again. I then left it for a week or two to see what it did, but eventually I couldn't bear the sight of it and tied it back up again. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks. |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
- Posted by mackel_in_dfw (My Page) on Fri, May 18, 12 at 15:26
| I'll tell you my story....Some people beat their trees to try to make 'em tougher. I'm not so stern, but I make sure I work the tree out and give it lateral stress while it's still staked. I remove stakes as soon as possible, and if tree ain't ready, I restake it, stress it regularly, then try again a month later. One day that durn thing will get aholt of itself, if ya planted it correctly. I don't own an italian cypress, but I sure wouldn't let it grow three leaders. I use finished compost as mulch and no fertilizers for situations like yours...and glad to meet you... Without photos, everyone always likes to say... Mackel |
|
| I hope the location has enough room for a pretty tall tree. You realize these are not foundation shrubs, right? |
|
| I had a couple....until last year when the ice bent them over at about halfway up. The larger one was about 15 ft. tall. The shorter one, Swanes'Golden was about 10 ft. They did not straighten up this Spring. I thought about staking them up but then realized the ice would get them this coming winter. If not, then the following winter. They are gone now and I now realize why I don't see very many around here in the foothills outside Seattle. Mike |
|
- Posted by uptightbuyer (My Page) on Sat, May 19, 12 at 10:41
| Thank you so much for your replies folks, really appreciate it :) To Mackel, Your response was very interesting about stressing the trees. We had two dogwoods that never flowered so one year (after reading how to do it) I went out and flogged them with a leather belt and the following spring and ever since they have flowered like mad! - Afraid of being whipped again I expect. If you don't flog the trees how exactly do you stress them? These are very young and I don't want to damage them. Your other points. We, like you, used compost and mulch at planting and have not fertilized, but we did put on one application of Fertilome Root Stimulator in early spring. What would you do about the three leaders please? To bboy, Yes, we understand about the growth of these trees, (saw them at Villa d'Este Lake Como. If you put that in Google and click "images" you will see lots of them in the grounds). There is plenty of room for them to grow way past the roof line of our house. To Mike, sorry about the loss of yours. They are very beautiful trees and give wonderful architectural interest. It is always sad to lose trees, especially mature ones. |
|
- Posted by mackel_in_dfw (My Page) on Sat, May 19, 12 at 12:03
| You stress them by simulating wind, rock them. It's love, not a beating...Wisconsitom knows a lot more about pruning, ask him, obviously my best answer would be to cut the two leaders off that have the thinnest diameter, or the most lateral angles... Mackel |
|
- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Sat, May 19, 12 at 13:34
| it was just planted ... last season.. it has enough stress. .. they are conifers we treat them like conifers.. and if we want single leader plants that grow straight up.. we remove ALL DUPLICATE LEADERS ... and we do it with hand pruning shears.. NOT BASEBALL BATS ... there is a conifer forum .. though i care not where you post ... this is a highly hated tree.. for many reasons.. of which .. you are already experiencing some of the reasons ... one thing i will note.. where you see them grown to perfection.. there are usually professional gardeners taking care of them.. you better bone up on how to become a professional .... as i do not think that this will be a plant and forget situation ... and then you will have to figure out how to do it at 10 feet.. 20 feet.. 30 feet.. 40 feet .. 50 feet .. etc.. it is not within the capabilities of most of us w/o a very large checkbook ... i wish you all the luck in the world with them ... ken |
Here is a link that might be useful: good place to start learning about conifers
|
- Posted by uptightbuyer (My Page) on Sun, May 20, 12 at 10:58
| Ken, I really don't know why I deserve your angst! I have seen these trees in our neighborhood growing exactly as we would like ours to grow. Whether you hate the trees or not others have different opinions please try to be respectful. I have no intention of knocking off two leaders with a baseball bat (I don't even own a baseball bat). I am not a novice gardener I have been gardening for many years myself, but I appreciate the input of others, excluding yours. Another thing, identifying with the "pain" inflicted on a tree when stressing it is ridiculous, let's be grown up here. |
|
- Posted by uptightbuyer (My Page) on Sun, May 20, 12 at 11:33
| P.S. The stressing of the dogwoods I mentioned earlier worked beautifully. For the more sensitive among you, I did not break the bark nor mark the trees in any way. They have been in over 20yrs now and are thriving and flowering profusely every year. Also, it is worth noting, many a plant and tree has been killed by too much kindness, many thrive on neglect. My smoke tree is one. |
|
| I lost mine because of wet snow and ice, not multiple leaders. One leader is the way to go though. Where they grow without wet snow and ice they do fine. Southern California is loaded with them. Uptightbuyer, you don't list your Zone or general location. That's why I mentioned snow and ice. I'm in Sunset Zone 4. I left a few inches on the 'Swane's Golden' and now a new sprout is coming up. It will be fine for a few years before I lose it to ice and snow. Mike |
|
- Posted by uptightbuyer (My Page) on Mon, May 21, 12 at 15:03
| Thank you Mike, I have cut off two leaders as Mackel advised, (it looks a lot better already). The remaining leader is still staked, but I hope it will strengthen enough for me to take off the support. The small one had two leaders so I have cut off one of those as well although the top on that one is not bent over like the big one. I live in Alabama, Zone 8, I would have guessed a lot different from Seattle but I see you have marked Z8. We do not get a lot of snow and ice although it can happen, but it usually melts before the day is through. As I said, I have seen other Italian Cypress trees in the neighborhood, not many, but some, and the ones I have seen are mature, standing 30 - 40ft. and as they have not been damaged by the elements I figured ours would stand a good chance too. Patty. |
|
| when freshly planted do they need any fertilizing and if so what kind? |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Trees Forum
Instructions
- You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
- HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
- No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.