My first good sized reduction...

[ldj92]

Hello

 

Just posting some pics of the reduction on a cherry i did today? Its at my house so thought it would be a good one to practice on... needed doing anyway. Sorry the pics are not too great but any feedback on good points/ bad points would be good.

 

Thanks

[doobin]

You forgot to put it back the right way up!

[ldj92]

damn it sorry about the neck ache

[White Noise]

Bit early in the year for a reduction of a cherry tree by that % . Nice shape though I would add some tree and shrub fertiliser to the base of that tree all the way out to the drip line . Anything high in pot ash and nitrogen will be good . Pruning this early could lead to numerous problems this and next year . Cherry tree pruning as a rule late summer never winter . Hence my bit early remark . Now go feed that tree

[ldj92]

Bit early in the year for a reduction of a cherry tree by that % . Nice shape though I would add some tree and shrub fertiliser to the base of that tree all the way out to the drip line . Anything high in pot ash and nitrogen will be good . Pruning this early could lead to numerous problems this and next year . Cherry tree pruning as a rule late summer never winter . Hence my bit early remark . Now go feed that tree

 

Thanks for the advice. Yeah i know it a little early but some of the advice I received said there is no real perfect time to prune them as they are prone to different types of diseases at different times of the year? Something along those lines anyway.

 

I will look into the shrub fertiliser now.

 

Thanks

[Fredward]

Looks nice and even, good shape but too thin for my liking. Looks as if you've taken a bit much of the inner canopy but hard to tell from the pictures really. I'm sure most customers would be pleased with your work, I usually get told I haven't taken enough hehe.

[ldj92]

Looks nice and even, good shape but too thin for my liking. Looks as if you've taken a bit much of the inner canopy but hard to tell from the pictures really. I'm sure most customers would be pleased with your work, I usually get told I haven't taken enough hehe.

 

 

Yeah I agree with you its quite bare in the inner canopy but are you not meant to clear it to let the light through?

[Fredward]

The leaves on the inside and outside of the canopy photosythesise different light, the inner canopy photosynthesises the diffuse light, which filters through the outer canopy. This is useful, but when the weather gets very hot or the conditions become dry, it is very important. The outer leaves 'shut down' to a certain extent by closing stomata to reduce moisture loss, then the leaves on the inside of the canopy (cooler, in the shade) are the only onesstil functioning, providing carbohydrates for the tree, so if they aren't there, the tree begins to go hungry! Also by removing the inner (lower) leaves you are lion's tailing, which has other repercussions, but this is more to do with branch taper (the branches can become hyper extended and thus less healthy and safe), but this is a whole other matter, and probably not that relevant in a cherry tree.

 

Also letting large amounts of light through is not particularly desireable for the tree, but it may be for the client. The extra light can 1. cause sun-scald on the delicte banches which have up until now been shaded. The sun basically cooks the cambial layer, causing it to die. 2. Promote epicormic growth from dormant/advanticious buds. Which will eventually make the tree more dense anyway.

 

In an ideal world you carry out a thin by removing first the dead, diseased and dying portions, then a bit of formative pruning (crossing braches, inward growth), and then if that wasn't enough then each branch should be thinned by 10-20% (or prescribed amount) by taking foliage from the tips, and the inner canopy at equal rates. I understand that in smaller trees it can hard to even move around, so you need to reduce more inner canopy, but if you can get it right on the samller trees, you know what to do on the bigger ones.

 

I've done this to big(er) trees, seen the amount of brush on the ground and thought 'oops', then come down only to realise it looks like I've done nothing! This is were the problem lies with some clients beacuse if you do the work properly it should look lie you've done not much. This is easier to see if you have before and after photos but you get my drift.

 

Sorry if this came across as a lecture, I realise it's only a cherry tree in a back garden, but if you are armed with the right knowledge it can give you a different perspective on work. It will be interesing to see how this tree responds, and if other posters agree/disagree with my thoughts.