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I pruned a tree too early - is there anything I can do?

jessicaphoebejessicaphoebe Posts: 3
in Problem solving
I read (at a glance) that trees need pruning when they are dormant. However, I pruned my weeping cherry tree yesterday (it was looking very unwieldy) and then read afterwards that I should have waited until after the frost.  Is there anything I can do?  Pruning spray? Covering the cuts with fleece? I love this tree and I'm worried i've damaged it.

Will be carefully researching first from now on in...
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  • GardenerSuzeGardenerSuze Posts: 5,692
    @jessicaholtaway02521 Advice now on winter pruning is more difficult due to milder winters. Your tree needs to be dormant so you could say that pruning has been undertaken at the right time.
    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • PlantmindedPlantminded Posts: 3,580
    edited 11 January
    According to this GW article, a weeping cherry tree should be pruned, if necessary, in Summer, not while it is dormant.

    https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/how-to-grow-weeping-cherry-tree/

    Using a sealant on pruning wounds is no longer recommended and it is better to let the wounds heal naturally.  I would just wait and hope that your tree recovers. Pruning at the wrong time doesn't necessarily mean it will definitely suffer!  I've made similar mistakes so just put it down to experience and part of the learning process!
    Wirral. Sandy, free draining soil.


  • jessicaphoebejessicaphoebe Posts: 3
    Thank you both for your comments - they have reassured me a little!  Hoping that the fact it's in a sunny spot will help it heal.
  • Robert WestRobert West Posts: 241
    I've often just pruned things when the mood takes me, or when I had time (and space in the garden waste bin) and then found out I shouldn't have. Never done long term damage yet. At worst you lose flowers that year. Most plants are tough enough to cope with our mistakes. 
  • GardenerSuzeGardenerSuze Posts: 5,692
    @Plantminded I assumed and it is wrongly that you pruned in the late winter. Having looked on line there seems to be suggestions to prune at various times and I am beginning to wonder if the best advice would be very little if at all?

     Perhaps every year in the summer months would be best for wounds to heal but with a small amount removed each year any possible chance of introducing  disease would be kept to a minimum. 
    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    @jessicaholtaway02521 .
    Cherry trees can suffer silver leaf disease if pruned in the winter which is why it is often advised to only prune them in the summer. Silver leaf disease can be fatal to the tree but not all will succumb. It is a fungus and can attack most members of the rose family.
    The main characteristic is a gradual silvering of the leaves which then shrivel and die.

     Unfortunately there is no treatment for it but hopefully your tree will survive.
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    Most plants are more resilient than we realise.  With the exception of plants where they may not flower if cut back at the wrong time, I cut plants back whenever I need to and don't stick to recommended times.
  • PlantmindedPlantminded Posts: 3,580
    It's the same with Plum trees @Gardenersuze, which are also Prunus species, as they can succumb to silver leaf disease and other infections if pruned in winter.
    Wirral. Sandy, free draining soil.


  • Jess91Jess91 Posts: 159
    Robert West said:
    I've often just pruned things when the mood takes me, or when I had time (and space in the garden waste bin) and then found out I shouldn't have. Never done long term damage yet. At worst you lose flowers that year. Most plants are tough enough to cope with our mistakes. 
    Same.  I've been merrily pruning my shrubby salvias back to the ground in about October/November time every year for the last who knows how long, not knowing you are supposed to leave them until spring as they are vulnerable to frost.

    I've never lost one yet  :D
    Slowly building a wildlife garden, in a new build in East Yorkshire.
  • PlantmindedPlantminded Posts: 3,580
    Pruning guidelines are there to help but can often be treated with flexibility, depending on the climate, soil conditions, the age of the plant and other factors. A few years ago I lost a mature Plum tree to a fungal disease by pruning at the wrong time. It was getting too big for its location anyway but it was still a shame to see it decline.
    Wirral. Sandy, free draining soil.


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