There's a problem with the photos just now @loriannenormanCxjxvb5C, so don't worry. I wonder if it's leaning so much just because of it's position - ie trying to get a bit more light.
I'm not sure there's much you can do about that other than re doing the staking, and that would probably mean a sturdy, tall stake in at the right hand side, between it and the ivy, and high enough to get the top tied in. Whether that would even work though, I'm not sure. It depends on whether you want to try and get it looking more like it should. The alternative is to grow something at the base, or beside it, to cover that trunk up a bit. It looks as if it's not been properly staked originally, so the damage is already done. A cane probably wouldn't have done a good enough job, apart from early on.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I think you may have put your finger on it @Fairygirl … it’s growing towards the light. Im not sure that there’s much that can be done if @loriannenormanCxjxvb5C wants to keep it as a standard.
I think it may also be affected by strong gusts of wind buffeting it as the wind swirls over the hedge. It looks to me as if the prevailing wind comes from the right of the photograph … the helenium-looking flowers at the back of the garden certainly look as if they too are buffeted by a wind from the right of the picture.
However if she would he happy with it as a normally shaped bushy shrub without the clear stem, then I’d be radical and cut the whole plant back by a third … thus should trigger plenty of growth up and down the stem and within a couple of years it’ll be a bushy shrub like the two seen nearby. It will however take up a larger ‘footprint’ in the garden and will still grow towards the light so will tend to be an asymmetrical shape.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Yes @Dovefromabove - I could see the angle on the other planting too, which looks very much like the result of winds. I'm not sure there's a lot that can be done other than the re staking, and relocating, or - as you say, cutting back.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Thank you for your comments. The only thing is, regarding the wind and the light, I only planted it in the ground here two days ago! Before that it was in a pot near to the side of the house getting sun most of the day and reasonably protected from the wind. So it has also only just been staked this way. @Dovefromabove when you say about cutting it back by a third, do you mean literally lopping the whole head off so you are just left with the stem? Or cutting all the branches back by a third? Sorry for my ignorance - every day’s a school day in my garden 🤣
I mean literally chop the top off .... I know it's a bit radical and you won't have a 'standard' lollipop type any more, but when the trunk puts out shoots from the stem you will have the makings of a shrub shaped shrub.
When a tree is in a pot at the side of the house it needs to be turned regularly, so that it gets an even amount of light on all sides ... not doing that might have caused the problem. Plants grow towards the light
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Mmm, ok that would make sense. I guess the top is just too heavy for the skinny trunk and nobody seems to think they’ve ever seen one grafted this way before either. I might ask at the garden centre where I bought it as they must have sold others. I may try the radical approach - I like an experiment! Thanks for your help.
Let us know what you decide to do and how things go
💡 Just a thought .... forsythia strikes quite well from cuttings ... I think that if I was taking the top off I'd use some of the twiggy growth to make hardwood cuttings and then if you're not happy with how the one you've got develops, you'll have some baby shrubs to grow on
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I think the fact that it's clearly been in the same pot for while, and been growing the way it has, will also have contributed to it's current state. Difficult for you to change that without some radical action, so trying what @Dovefromabove suggests will at least give you a better looking specimen.
Posts
There's a problem with the photos just now @loriannenormanCxjxvb5C, so don't worry.
I wonder if it's leaning so much just because of it's position - ie trying to get a bit more light.
I'm not sure there's much you can do about that other than re doing the staking, and that would probably mean a sturdy, tall stake in at the right hand side, between it and the ivy, and high enough to get the top tied in. Whether that would even work though, I'm not sure. It depends on whether you want to try and get it looking more like it should. The alternative is to grow something at the base, or beside it, to cover that trunk up a bit.
It looks as if it's not been properly staked originally, so the damage is already done. A cane probably wouldn't have done a good enough job, apart from early on.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I'm not sure there's a lot that can be done other than the re staking, and relocating, or - as you say, cutting back.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
@Dovefromabove when you say about cutting it back by a third, do you mean literally lopping the whole head off so you are just left with the stem? Or cutting all the branches back by a third? Sorry for my ignorance - every day’s a school day in my garden 🤣
When a tree is in a pot at the side of the house it needs to be turned regularly, so that it gets an even amount of light on all sides ... not doing that might have caused the problem. Plants grow towards the light
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I may try the radical approach - I like an experiment!
Thanks for your help.
💡 Just a thought .... forsythia strikes quite well from cuttings ... I think that if I was taking the top off I'd use some of the twiggy growth to make hardwood cuttings and then if you're not happy with how the one you've got develops, you'll have some baby shrubs to grow on
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Hope you get a good result @loriannenormanCxjxvb5C - they're quite hard to kill
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...