Prudence important in pruning

Pruning trees and shrubs is our first major late-winter garden project for this year.

“Between now and just before the trees leaf out is the best time to prune,” says Jeff Perry, city arborist for Spokane’s Urban Forest Program. Deciduous trees and shrubs are dormant now and less likely to be harmed by the stress of losing a few branches and twigs. You can also see the branch structure better when there are no leaves on the plants.

Proper pruning adds beauty to the garden and years to the life of the key elements of a home landscape. Trees and shrubs are often the backbone of the garden, the backdrop for the rest of our plantings and the shelter from the cold winter wind or hot summer sun. According to Perry, properly pruned plants are also cheaper to maintain in the long run

Many homeowners find pruning a daunting task. Perry has a few suggestions and guidelines to help you over that hump.

Pick up a good book on pruning and study what it says about your particular plants. Perry has several favorites but Cass Turnbull’s “Guide to Pruning; What, When, Where and How to Prune for a More Beautiful Garden” (Sasquatch Books, 17.95) is a good one to start with.

“As a homeowner or a person who is not a professional pruning person, this is an ideal book to have,” said Perry. Turnbull explains in an easy to read and humorous style the dos and don’ts of pruning and illustrates many topics with easy to understand drawings. Turnbull is the founder of PlantAmnesty ( www.plantamnesty.org), a Seattle-based organization that provides education and information on the proper care of urban trees and shrubs.

Taking some classes is also a good idea. Perry will be teaching two workshops locally over the next few months starting Saturday with the “Intro to Pruning and Care of Trees, Shrubs and Vines” workshop sponsored by Spokane Tilth. With the assistance of Kirk Phillips and Gene Nolin, Perry will demonstrate the pruning of fruit trees, shrubs and vines in two residential gardens on Spokane’s lower South Hill and at Finch Arboretum.

Perry will also be teaching a “Pruning Techniques” workshop and field trip through the Institute for Extended Learning in late April and May.

“We will have more time in this class for hands-on learning,” said Perry. The workshop will have two evening sessions to teach pruning fundamentals followed by a field trip to Finch Arboretum for hands-on practice.

If you are ready to start pruning, Perry has these guidelines.

First, DO NOT TOP TREES. Topping is the practice of cutting off all the branches of a tree at the same height.

“People think the tree is too tall and it’s going to fail and fall on their house or their car. This is actually the biggest myth around. A tree in the natural state (form) and healthy condition is much stronger than a tree that’s been topped,” said Perry.

Topping a tree to reduce its size actually has the opposite effect, because the tree responds by sending out a profusion of small shoots that grow very quickly from the stumps. Regardless what height you want the tree to be, it will continue growing to the height its biology tells it to grow to.

Second, get to know your shrubs and what their particular needs are, before you start pruning. Unless you are deliberately creating espaliered or topiary plants, shearing your shrubs into nice neat round balls is the same as topping trees. Again, the plant’s biology will tell it, and you, how to grow and it will continue to do just that. You may be surprised to learn many shrubs don’t need any pruning at all.

Flowering shrubs need to be pruned at specific times to preserve their flower buds. Some shrubs set their flower buds on wood that grew last year. Others set them on wood that grows during the current year. As an example, plants like forsythia, lilac and spirea set their buds on last year’s wood. Thus they must be pruned right after they bloom in the spring so that new wood can grow and set its buds. If you trim them now, you would lose much of the bloom.

If you decide to hire a tree service, Perry says to ask if they top trees and then promptly send anyone who answers “yes” packing. Ask for sites where you can see their work and then visit them. Lastly ask if the person who is going to do the work is certified by the International Society of Arboriculture, the leading national professional certification organization.

“It seems to be expensive in the short term. If you don’t take care of the problems that occur (now) with an urban tree, then later on you are going to be paying a much higher price to correct them,” Perry says.

Dry winter alert

I have seen a number of droopy rhododendrons around the area and that means they and other evergreens are in desperate need of water. So get the hoses out and water rhodies and other evergreens deeply. Do it several times over several consecutive days and then watch them if the weather stays dry into March. To prevent nasty surprises though, remember to drain hoses and faucets to prevent them from freezing at night.