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Bay tree help
Trisha21
Posts: 15
I have inherited a large bay tree 15ft h x 7ft w x 8ft d approximate, my husband wants to take it back & down by half, to give us more light in the conservatory and to be able to see up our garden, we know it will be bare for quiet a while but I just want to know if it’s ok to do it now and will it recover to it’s former self if kept at a manageable height. My neighbour has cut it back her side as it was hanging over the wall a fair way. Any tips on that we should do would be greatly appreciated
0
Posts
As a matter of caution, I would suggest taking half the stems right back to the main stem, spacing them to keep a balanced shape. I would then shorten the remaining stems by up to a third this year, again keeping a good shape. Assuming it responds well and produces new shoots nearer the main stems you could then shorten the longer stems again next year.
Alternatively, you could raise the crown - cut off all shoots up to shoulder height, thus revealing bare stemmed structure which will let in light. Then thin out any crossing or broken stems above that height. We did that with a whopper we inherited and it's been fine.
If it's Portuguese or cherry laurel I'd chop it to the base and dig out the root. Horrid things that are very dark and dull and thuggish.