Arborvitae are evergreen beauties that thrive with the right amount of pruning, helping them maintain their natural shape and vigor. To ensure these trees reach their full potential, it’s essential to time your pruning correctly and employ the right techniques. Here’s a detailed guide to help you master the art of pruning arborvitae.
Timing Your Pruning
Step 1: Shear in Early Spring
Early spring is the optimal time for heavy pruning. During this period, new growth hasn’t yet begun, allowing the cuts to be hidden once the growth starts. To shear the plant, use pruning shears to trim the tips of all branches, creating a more even shape. Ensure you leave at least one shoot at the top for new growth. Pruning shears, with their scissor-like blades, are ideal for shaping. For removing entire branches, loppers or a small saw are more suitable. The earliest you should prune is mid-March, depending on when spring arrives in your area.
Step 2: Light Pruning from Early Spring to Mid-Summer
Throughout the growing season, from early spring to mid-summer, you can perform light pruning. This involves snipping any errant branches that may appear. Pruning during this period encourages new growth, so it’s best to do it during the prime growing season to avoid stimulating growth in winter.
Step 3: Prune Troublesome Branches Anytime
Whenever you notice diseased, dead, or damaged branches, prune them immediately. Removing these branches is crucial for the tree’s health, as diseases can spread, and damaged branches can drain the tree’s resources.
Step 4: Avoid Pruning Very Young Arborvitae
Young arborvitae need their foliage for growth. Pruning too much can stunt their growth or even kill them. In the first year or two, prune sparingly, focusing only on diseased, broken, or dead branches, and any that rub against each other.
Step 5: Be Conservative with Older Trees
For arborvitae that are over two years old, be more conservative with your pruning. These trees can recover from cuts into one or two-year-old wood, but older wood is less likely to regrow. Focus on maintaining the tree’s natural shape with minimal pruning.
Creating Shapes
Step 1: Reduce Height by Cutting to a Lower Branch Crotch
To make your arborvitae shorter, cut the main stem down to a point where a large branch grows off it. Ensure you’re cutting into live wood with growing fronds. Avoid cutting into old wood, as the tree won’t regrow from that point.
Step 2: Limit Height Reduction to 20 Percent
Reducing the tree’s height by more than 20 percent can shock the tree and risk cutting into old wood, which it won’t recover from.
Step 3: Trim Branch Tips to Shape the Tree
To shape the tree, use pruning shears to snip off the outer edges of branches, creating a light, natural shape. Follow the tree’s natural form by trimming any pieces that stick out.
Step 4: Maintain a Wider Base
Arborvitae naturally have a wider base, allowing the bottom of the tree to receive sunlight. When shaping, keep this feature in mind. If the shape becomes too straight, trim more off the top branches.
Step 5: Prune Lightly on Old Wood
Old wood on arborvitae doesn’t bud, so what you cut won’t always regrow. Use a light hand to avoid damaging the tree’s shape irreparably.
Pruning Troublesome Branches
Step 1: Use the 3-Branch Cut for Large Limbs
To remove a large limb without damaging the bark, use the 3-branch cut method. Start by making a cut on the underside of the branch, 6 to 12 inches away from the trunk, cutting 1/4 of the way into the branch. Make another cut on top, 1 inch further out from the trunk than the first cut. Finally, cut the stub off at the trunk, sawing from top to bottom just beyond the swollen ring of bark.
Step 2: Cut Out Dead Branches to the Stem
When you see brown foliage, it indicates the branch is dead. Cut the branch right at the stem with clippers or a saw and pull it out. Lopping shears are ideal for this, but for larger branches, use a handsaw or chainsaw.
Step 3: Look for and Prune Diseased Branches
Diseased branches should be pruned to prevent the spread of diseases. Cut them back to the stem or a lateral branch. Common diseases include needle blight, which turns needle tips yellow or brown and dries them out. Dispose of diseased branches properly to prevent spreading fungal spores.
Step 4: Prune Away Damaged Branches
If branches are damaged by storms or ice, prune them back to the stem or a lateral branch. Damaged branches drain the tree’s resources and won’t provide new growth.
By following these steps, you can ensure your arborvitae thrives, maintaining its natural beauty and contributing to a lush, vibrant garden. π³π