The Pruning Answer Book: Solutions to Every Problem You’ll Ever Face; Answers to Every Question You’ll Ever Ask

281 Pages·2011·8.82 MB·English

by  Lewis Hill

THE PRUNING ANSWER BOOK
THE Pruning
ANSWER BOOK
Solutions to Every Problem You’ll Ever Face
Answers to Every Question You’ll Ever Ask
LEWIS HILL & PENELOPE O’SULLIVAN
The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by
publishing practical information that encourages
personal independence in harmony with the environment.
Edited by Gwen Steege, Carleen Madigan, and Elizabeth P. Stell
Editorial adaptation by Penelope O’Sullivan
Art direction and book design by Cynthia N. McFarland
Text production by Jennifer Jepson Smith
Cover and interior decorative illustration by © William Howell Golson
Interior illustrations by © Elayne Sears, except for 167 by Beverly Duncan;
42 top, 54, 56, 57, 81, 82, 138, 192–194, and 288 by Elara Tanguy
Indexed by Catherine F. Goddard
Expert review by Tchukki Andersen and Kevin Smith
© 2011 by Lewis Hill
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written
permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief
passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate credits; nor may
any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted
in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or other — without written permission from the publisher.
The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our
knowledge. All recommendations are made without guarantee on the part of the
author or Storey Publishing. The author and publisher disclaim any liability in
connection with the use of this information.
Storey books are available for special premium and promotional uses and for
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Storey Publishing
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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Hill, Lewis
[Pruning made easy]
The pruning answer book / Lewis Hill and Penelope O’Sullivan.
p. cm.
Previously published as: Pruning made easy.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-60342-710-4 (flexibind with paper spine: alk. paper)
1. Pruning. I. O’Sullivan, Penelope. II. Title.
SB125H45 2011
635.9′1542—dc22
2010043058
Contents
Acknowledgments
Improving on Nature
Chapter 1: Why Prune?
Promoting Health and Vigor Keeping Up Appearances
Enhancing Natural Form Improving Flowering and
Fruiting Controlling Size Guiding Growth Mending
Damage Eliminating Hazards
Chapter 2: When to Prune
Chapter 3: Tools and Equipment
Pruners and Loppers Saws Hedge Shears, Clippers,
and Knives
Chapter 4: Pruning Practices Right and Wrong
Where to Cut and Why Pinching Unkind Cuts
Shearing Heading Back (Lateral Pruning) Thinning
Limbing Up Root Pruning
Chapter 5: Pruning Deciduous Shade Trees
Planting Trees Training Shade Trees Maintaining Shade
Trees Pruning Older Shade Trees
Chapter 6: Pruning Flowering Trees and Ornamental Shrubs
Flowering Trees Deciduous Ornamental Shrubs Roses
Chapter 7: Pruning Evergreens
Narrow-Leaf Evergreens Broadleaf Evergreens
Woody Herbs
Chapter 8: Pruning Hedges
Shaping Hedges Types of Hedges
Chapter 9: Artistic Pruning
Topiary Espalier Cordon Coppicing and Pollarding
Chapter 10: Pruning Woody Vines and Ground Covers
Woody Vines Clematis Woody Ground Covers
Chapter 11: Pruning Fruit Trees
Timing Pruning Styles Thinning Fruit
Solving Problems Tips for Specific Fruits
Chapter 12: Pruning Bush Fruits, Brambles, and Grapes
Grapes Blueberries and Other Bush Fruits
Raspberries and Other Brambles
Chapter 13: Pruning Nut Trees
Almonds Chestnuts Filberts Pecans and
Hickories Walnuts and Butternuts
Plant-by-Plant Pruning Guide for Ornamental Trees, Shrubs, and Vines
Index
Acknowledgments
Skillful editors make me a better writer. I thank Gwen Steege, who initiated this
project; and Carleen Madigan and Liz Stell for working with me on this book.
I’m grateful to Pam Art, Storey’s president, and Deborah Balmuth, editorial
director, for their support. Art director Cindy McFarland, Ilona Sherratt, and
illustrators Elayne Sears and Elara Tanguy designed a book that’s fun and easy
to use, and Amy Greeman, publicity director, is promoting it. Special thanks go
to Nancy Hill for trusting me to update the work of Lewis, her late husband.
My technical readers are the unsung heroes of this manuscript. Tchukki
Andersen, consulting arborist for the Tree Care Industry Association in
Londonderry, New Hampshire, commented with patience and knowledge. Kevin
T. Smith, PhD, project leader and supervisory plant physiologist at the USDA
Forest Service in Durham, New Hampshire, kept me on track when I ventured
into tree science.
I’d also like to acknowledge some top-notch written resources: Edward F.
Gilman’s An Illustrated Guide to Pruning, 2nd edition; the late Alex L. Shigo’s
Modern Arboriculture and Tree Pruning: A Worldwide Photo Guide; and the
websites www.treedictionary.com and www.invasive.org/species/list. cfm?
id=76.
Pruning delights me whether I’m taking off suckers or watching arborists
remove dead limbs from big trees. I thank my clients, friends, and husband (a
keen plant collector), who let me hone my skills on their very special trees and
shrubs. They honor me with their confidence. My husband, Bob, showed love in
action by cooking dinners and doing many of my chores while I wrote. I praise
Leslie Webb, Candace Wheeler, Rose Matheny, and Daniela Kulik for centering
me, and my kind neighbors and loving friends who cheer me on.
— Penelope O’Sullivan
Improving on Nature
Nature is a master gardener and pruner extraordinaire. Just visit an orchard in
early summer. If the fruit set is unusually heavy, you’ll see hundreds of little
apples or peaches on the ground. Trees drop the extras when they lack the
resources to develop them to maturity. And look around you in winter. Snow,
high winds, and ice storms prune by snapping off weak old branches.
In gardens and in the wild, rabbits, mice, deer, elk, moose, beavers, and
porcupines prune — just not in ways we consider horticultural achievements.
They’re eating at their favorite restaurants, but in doing so, they fit into the
scheme of life. Let’s face it: if you don’t prune, Nature will! Over time, people
have observed Nature’s pruning methods and tried to improve on them because
pruning — when properly done — strengthens rather than weakens trees. Here
are the answers to your most pressing pruning questions. Pruning is a balance
between art and science, between a plant’s essential form and your pruning goal
or the effect you want to achieve. Remember, a well-maintained landscape with
handsome trees and shrubs brings pleasure to you and your neighbors, and adds
value to your home and community.
CHAPTER 1
Why Prune?
Ever wrecked a tree or shrub by pruning it? The pruning fundamentals in this
book can keep you from repeating the mistake. Knowing the basics boosts the
beauty of your garden and helps your plants survive and thrive. Here are some of
pruning’s many benefits: Promoting health and vigor
Keeping up appearances
Enhancing natural form
Showcasing beautiful bark
Increasing flowering
Increasing yields from fruit trees and berry bushes
Controlling size
Guiding growth
Managing a view
Mending damage
Eliminating hazards
Pruning helps keeps woody plants healthy. Proper pruning can also enhance the
natural pattern of growth of a shrub or tree, improve flowering and fruit set, and
control its size. Sometimes you can prune out growth as preventative medicine
or to eliminate a disease. Young or old trees and bushes may have problems that
pruning can solve.
Promoting Health and Vigor
Q I have some tree and shrub plantings that grew well for a while, but now
they don’t look as good. Can pruning get them growing again?
A If a shrub or tree is beginning to show symptoms of age but is not quite ready
to retire, pruning can restore vitality. Although you may be tempted to chop back
every old plant to stimulate new growth, this doesn’t always work. It is risky on