Eastern Redbud: leggy, needs severe pruning - how much and when?
Wayne Reibold
14 years ago
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gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
14 years agoWayne Reibold
14 years agoRelated Discussions
Eastern Redbud hasn't bloomed yet!!!
Comments (14)Tried a couple of the western redbuds once upon a time - my ex fell in love with them on a drive down to the Bay area one May. One succumbed to verticillium wilt within the year; the second one struggled for a couple of years longer then finally gave up. I've been in the nursery biz here for the past 20 years or so and western redbuds have never been very common.....in fact I can't think of more than a couple of times I have ever seen them available locally. If I'd have to pick a redbud for this area, I'd go with Cercis chinensis 'Avondale' - for the most part, Asian species seem to do quite well in our mild, damp climate....See MoreEastern Redbud advice
Comments (12)I watered a little every other day ==>>> you must insure.. by inserting your finger 2 inches into the soil ... that the ENTIRE ROOT MASS is maintained as damp.. for the next two years ... with NEAR drying in between ... how often and how to do that.. in YOUR soil.. is beyond us to define ... a LITTLE water means nothing.. if it is not getting into the root zone ... since you imply they were commercially installed.. i presume you have a warranty ... with your description of a little water.. i fear you will never find out about root rots.. since the tree will be dead.. long before a rot can develop ... i would hope they are properly mulched... and i wonder what your soil type is.. and what if any amendments were used... as per tor above.. more info please ... ken...See MoreEastern Redbud
Comments (14)Go to the non-leaved portion of the tree, and try to bend a small branch. If it breaks, it's dead. Redbud are notorius in my experience for having trouble when transplanted. Was the original tree in a pot, or balled and burlaped, or bareroot. They often dieback, but the "good part" is that they'll resprout from roots. Was this a "general/generic" redbud or a special cultivar (there are now cultivars that show red or yellow coloring on the new growth or varigated leaves or have differences in their flowers). If it was a special cultivar, it was likely grafted and you now have a "generic" redbud. If you were only planting a regular/generic redbud do the following: Find out if there is any growth from the original trunk. If there is no growth in the original trunk, use and handsaw and cut off at the ground. If the growth from the original trunk is alive but weak (and this is not a special cultivar [see paragraph above]), I'd do the same thing. Then decide the following: Do you want a single trunk'd tree or a multi-trunked tree? If single remove all but the strongest stem. If multi-trunked leave the three strongest and remove the rest. It should do fine. I did know one tree that died to the ground twice before hitting its stride, but it will eventually reward you with a great tree....See Morepruning Eastern Redbud
Comments (10)Thank you, all.. I'm sorry I don't have a photo at this time. The tree is planted mostly under large old pines, but in a bed about 5-6 feet from a garage, in a smaller suburban yard. Ken, it would seem great to 'live and let live' as I do with most other plantings... but... The "shoots" literally poked out (think of the Statue of Liberty's crown - it's the best I can do to describe it) of the entire perimeter (about 10 of them) of the crown at least 5-6 feet all-around. I couldn't imagine those branches surviving winter here (if we had a bad one), and was also interested in branching for flowering purposes in the longer term. Re "1/3 cutting'... Brandon... I generally took the larger of 3 stems of a branch back to the node.. trying to use that as my method for the 'shoots.' Otherwise, they seemed to be extensions of branches that were rubbing. What is meant by 'the correct branching angle of limbs, correcting those too narrow as early as possible'..? Again, any advice, info and guidance is much appreciated. It can be such a beautiful (and healthy) tree.....See Morebrandon7 TN_zone7
14 years agobrandon7 TN_zone7
14 years agoEmbothrium
14 years agoWayne Reibold
14 years agobrandon7 TN_zone7
14 years agojm30
14 years agobrandon7 TN_zone7
14 years agoWayne Reibold
14 years agogardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
14 years ago
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5