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Pruning a Flowering Cherry
laarobbins
Posts: 55
in Plants
What time of year is best to prune my flowering cherry - not sure what cultivar it is - was in the garden when I moved here... But want to take it back quite a bit as it is imposing on the walkway down my narrow garden...
Any help gratefully received!!
Louise
0
Posts
Summertime. Unlike apples and pears, they should not be pruned in winter as they are then prone to spores of a nasty fungus called Silverleaf. Don't do it just yet as sap is rising fast - wait until June time. Don't use any tar based dressing treatment to cover the wounds - latest thinking is that it can create a nice little humid shelter for spores to develop. let the wound dry out naturally.
Yes, in the summer
but right now, take a photo of it as it is without any leaves, and work out the shape you want it to be and on the photo mark where you need to cut in order to create the shape you want.
It's so difficult to see the form of a tree when it's covered with leaves, and you can end up chopping away and ending up with a lopsided lollipop, or worse..... but if you look at the tree now and plan you'll stand a chance of still having a well-shaped tree
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Good advice Dove. Patience is the key!
Louise -another thing you can do is raise the canopy if you're short on space as it still keeps the basic shape of the tree. Some of the lower branches are removed so that you have more height underneath- if that makes sense!
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
All great feedback, thank you... Summer it is then!