Conifer Pruning

Conifer Pruning Leicestershire-

When pruning Conifers you have to be careful not to remove all the foliage as most species (particularly species used for hedging) will not regenerate from branches when they have no foliage.

So when considering whether to control the size and spread of a conifer early maintenance can make a huge difference to the long term sustainability of the tree or hedge, as the option of reducing it considerably may not be feasible.

To consider this we need to group conifers into two sections. Firstly, the bushy types with a solid form such as Leyland Cypress, Cupressus species etc. Secondly, open growing species such as Cedars or Pines.

The bushy ones! They will have foliage only to the outside of the branches, so when you look into the middle of the tree you will notice it is just branches and nothing else. This represents a problem when pruning as the foliage has to be retained to allow the tree to grow. When you reduce the height significantly you will be left with only a ring of foliage around the outside of the tree. It is therefore impossible to prune down the height whilst also maintaining a point at the top, unless this is only the case from a view from a single direction. There are 2 schools of thought to the height reduction: The tree can be pruned to create a flat top or the central stem and branches without foliage can be removed which leaves an inverted cone shape in the top surrounded by foliage. But what is the difference?? Well, it’s all in the way the tree develops afterwards. Conifers can physically turn their branches upwards following the pruning. If there is cone cut into the top the movement of branches is greater which brings the conical appearance back sooner but can leave large gaps where the branch has moved from! Otherwise if the top is left flat then the branches turn less, so instead the foliage grows from the outside and then into the middle. The end results.

Open growing Conifers.. Just like above most species don’t regenerate. However, it is often possible to crown reduce these trees whilst maintaining a natural form. The issue is in the longer term. As older needles die off and younger growth is pruned off the zone of viable growth becomes thinner and located closer to the outer canopy. Form can be lost long term, whereupon the flowing branches associated with a Cedar may end up like a topiary. This issue should be considered when selecting the pruning cuts.

If you are looking to get any Conifer Pruning undertaken Beddow Tree would always recommend at least talking to a knowledgeable tree surgeon; Mike has been called out many times and asked “can it be repaired?” and sadly the answer is often “no”.