Question pls, regarding pruning up Mutabilis into a tree.
rosydreams SoCal (10a Sunset 19 HeatZone 8)
8 years ago
Hello everyone, I live in SoCal and have a 3 yr old Mutabilis that is finally starting to (awkwardly) take off. :) it's planted in a spot that is too shady and close to our community mailbox so should be moved.
I came across these pics on Pinterest of Mutabilis train into a tree shape, that seems so lovely and graceful. It really inspired me. Forgive me for not crediting the owner, they weren't labeled.
I was wondering how hard it would be to train Mutabilis like this and keep it in that shape? I have a location where something like this would look lovely but I'm wondering if it would be a battle to rein her in.
Also in the pics it's branches seem to weep, while mine presently seems to just shoot long limbs straight out and up. Is that weeping effect from careful pruning?
Thank you so much for your kind thoughts,
geetha
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Comments (8)Wow, very helpful! Fruitnut, you say to remove the "overly thick" and 20% of the larger branches. I know it's a dumb question, but how do I decide what overly thick and "larger" means? Harvestman, your explanation was definitely helpful! Let me ask this: if I let some of the tall vertical growth keep growing, will those bear fruit? I read that fruit only came on the more horizontal ones, but there appear to be flower buds galore on even the tall, straight, thin ones this year (though last year there were only leaves). And yes, it's grown out of the bottom of the barrel and into the cobblestones! They are 150 year old cobblestones, and there's about 3/4 inch in between each one, so there's room there... I forgot to add one fascinating fact (and question!!). That thick, low branch that grows out the right side there--that's a grafted peach branch! It didn't do too well. TONS of peaches, none of which were edible. They made the branch way too heavy, never got enough sun, the branch is smashing into the fence (and most of the fruit only grew on the end there, and they were diseased. I have NO idea what to do with that!!! Suggestions?? Because of space constraints and b/c it has grown to reach so far out beyond what it can handle in weight, I obviously need to prune it pretty dramatically. But the amt. that I figure I need to prune (to stop it from growing into the fence anymore) would basically cut back all of the vegetation and fruit. Should I do that?? THANK YOU!!!...See MoreLycheelova and Ohiojay I have a question regarding pruning
Comments (5)Lycheeluva, Are you knew to this like me? I have grown tropicals for a while but mango I have not been able to grow succesfully until recently. I am happy so far. I have had my Cogshall the longest and though it has a little anthracnose, it is pretty happy. I have removed suckers below the graft now twice. Today was the second time I removed the sucker. It is amazing to me how fast they grow. I am hoping now that my Cogshall has finished blooming and lost all the small fruit, it will grow now. I have not had a flush yet. When I got it it was maturing a flush that had been growing before I bought it in July. 5 months now and all it has done is bloom and grow suckers. I am feeding it periodically. It looks pretty healthy. Andrew...See MoreHelp regarding pruning
Comments (9)1. Yes, there should be a "bump" or distinct line showing between the top part that is the fruit you want, ie; the "scion" and the root stock. 2. Grafted trees produce fruit much sooner than seedling trees, as the grafted part (scion) is taken from a mature tree that is already fruiting. Also various root stocks will impart various traits to the trees, depending on the type of root stock. For example, some will dwarf a tree, some have resistance to certain root diseases or be more compatible to different types of soils. A cutting is taking a cut part of a young branch of a mature tree and putting it into soil so it develops it's own roots. It will also fruit younger like the graft as it's taken from a mature tree, but it will be on it's own roots, not grafted roots. It is cheaper for a grower to do this, and you lose any added benefits you would get from a particular root stock, but it's an inexpensive way to get a quickly fruiting tree. A seedling is the least expensive way to propagate citrus. Down side is that it can take anywhere from 5 to 15 years for a seedling to be mature enough to produce fruit. 3. A stake is just a strong tall stick or pole used to train a tree. You tie the trunk to it to keep it in an upright position when the tree is young until the tree is strong enough to keep that position without the stake, usually about 1-2 years. The ties must be checked and enlarged as the tree grows so as to not girdle or choke the trunk. 4. The tip pruning I mentioned will do this. But it can also be done later, after a year or two, when the tree has more leaves. Either way will work. By the way, if you don't have a tree on a dwarfing root stock, it will take a lot of pruning several times a year to keep it at 3 feet. This will limit the amount of fruit you will get, as pruning does take off the tips of the branches. Citrus produce their fruit on the tips of new growth, so if you are always pruning these off, to keep it small, you will not get very much fruit at all. If it's on dwarfing root stock you can keep it smaller and you may get more fruit, though 3 feet is still very small even for dwarf tree. Remember a full sized lemon or orange tree wants to get over 20 feet so that's a lot of pruning. A dwarf root stock will keep it at about 5 to 8 feet, quite a bit smaller than a full sized tree, but still bigger than 3 feet. Meyer lemons are a different case though. They are naturally smaller anyway and on a dwarf root stock can be kept around 4 feet, but you will still sacrifice some fruit for pruning it so small. Fyi....See MoreRegarding pruning, dormancy, and repotting in Zone 3/4
Comments (4)cfox, Where do you garden n in zone 3/4? The Mission fig is very delicious and prolific. Under pot culture you can grow the most winter tender figs, because they are out of the severe cold over winter. You must however, be careful to grow varieties that tolerate humidity and ripen quickly to prevent fruit rot, and figs not ripening in time before fall frosts. I don't think your fig tree is ready to be bumped up to a bigger pot going by the size of the trunk. You can easily slip it out of the pot and check the roots. If tightly compacted, just use a serrated knife, and make vertical slits into the root mass from top to bottom, to a depth of .5", every 2" around the root mass. You are disrupted any future root circling by doing this. Then pot it into your larger pot. If it is root bound, there is no good reason to root prune it (the above procedure is not root pruning, root pruning is cutting away, removing roots), if it is going into a larger pot. Just disrupt the fig tree's root circling pattern, if there is one present, by the means I outlined above. Root pruning is only done when the fig tree is returned to the same pot after the roots are pruned, generally not when it is bumped up to a bigger pot. Only the root bound, circling roots are slit to stop the circling root activity, which if unchecked, will choke the tree in time. If there is still room for more root growth, just return it to its current pot. You can check it again next spring. Now is the time to branch prune. Reduce the two lowest branches to app. 10" each, cutting 3/8" above the highest remaining node . This will cause branching. Trim the leader to about 16" from the highest up lower branch. Again, make the cut 3/8" above a node. Your fig tree will branch out very nicely. I like my pot cultured fig trees to grow multiple trunks, and branch down low for a number of reasons. It keeps the center of gravity low down so that the tree is more stable in winds. If blown over, the trunk(s) and branches are less prone to get damaged. Plus, closer to the ground the heat generated by the ground around the tree will promote faster growth. Heat, full sun, and low humidity are a fig tree's best friend. Your fig tree will break dormancy in its own time, as it warms up. If you still have late frosts, you can put your fig outside as long as the temperature is above freezing. Bring it inside every single time it freezes. This is called, "the fig shuffle.". Figs tolerate "0," frost, zero! They are extremely frost sensitive, especially new, spring growth. May I direct your attention to a recent Fig Forum post placed by Tropic of Capricorn, "Fig identification help," March 27, 2018. You may find the post helpful for your particular growing zone. Moses...See Morerosydreams SoCal (10a Sunset 19 HeatZone 8)
8 years ago
fig_insanity Z7b E TN
8 years agorosydreams SoCal (10a Sunset 19 HeatZone 8) thanked fig_insanity Z7b E TN
nancylee2
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ValRose PNW Wa 8a
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoMelissa Northern Italy zone 8
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agorosydreams SoCal (10a Sunset 19 HeatZone 8) thanked Melissa Northern Italy zone 8Xtal in Central TX, zone 8b
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