The time has come to take the scissors or the saw and free ornamental and fruit trees from dry or unproductive branches. But it cannot be drifted: a cluster of errors will lead to the death of the specimen.
Prune or not prune?
That is the question. It is a half-necessary practice, half capricious. It is true that pruning in time means rejuvenating a specimen, which will gain in health and vigor. It also safeguards security, because a glass that is too bulky in a small garden is a guaranteed problem. On the other hand, pruning has been abused for decades and many copies of the city are deformed by the whim of gardeners who worked 40 years ago.
Copies of all kinds are being pruned these days, although the pruning season will lengthen more than the account (until spring entry), because there are not enough resources to carry it out at the right time: the month of January. But at Ocean Pines you can feel very satisfied with the service of Santa Maria Tree Services, which usually respects the principles of harmony and balance.
In the garden you will also have to prune some ornamentals (ivy, plumbago, hibiscus, campsis, honeysuckle ...), and hedgerows of aligustre. The tips are very similar: for those with a woody trunk, avoid making the cut without taking into account a tirasavias that allows growth to continue.
Always keep the tool clean and if the cut is deep apply a protective paste. In the case of fruit trees, the pruning function has other added functions: to ensure that the branches are productive, that the specimen does not increase too much in height (or it will be impossible to access the upper fruit) and prevent the cup from becoming entangled and little air circulates (the fungi will be secured). In general, common sense should predominate. Never prune on a whim, do it out of necessity. Nature is wiser than us and has never considered any pruning.
Tirasavias.Whenever a branch is pruned it is necessary to leave buds or a secondary twig next to the cut, so that the sap is not interrupted abruptly. This advice also works when pruning a hedge or a small shrub: if the yolk is left just before cutting, many rotting and unwanted shapes will be avoided. The tree reacts in an excessive way to recover its shape and not having a prepared yolk will release too many shoots.
Imbalance.The intervention in a tree must be for your own health. You should never prune part of the glass because it collides with a wall, for example. In that case, the tree will be unbalanced and will eventually break or die. If a main branch is broken by a storm or the weight of the snow, part of the rest must also be pruned in order to achieve the balance that the tree needs. These poorly made pruning are very dangerous.
Bad times. The best time to prune a tree is usually at the beginning of winter: it is when it is in a vegetative period and you can afford a season without leaves. In addition, the sap barely circulates and the 'bleeding' of the specimen will be avoided. A poorly made cut (without a clean cut) and at an inappropriate time, will significantly damage the health of the tree, which can present fungal infections at these points that will lead to rot.
Stumps This is the result of incorrect or out of date pruning. They are exaggerated growths made by the tree in order to create a blockage to prevent the entry of pathogens, or because it has lost track of which branch should grow. When a branch is cut, the apex stops producing the hormone that regulates growth, and the plant is confused. We must avoid bad practices or the health of the tree will suffer.