Renovating a Japanese Garden

donbear

Hi Folks.,

I have a very poorly attended Japanese garden. *I have been ill for about three years and have not felt like doing much in the yard. *My question is, When can I start prunning the evergreens *I have several Mugos and a weeping white pine *Also some others that the name excapes me at the moment.

If you folks could help me, I would appreciate it *

Thanks

Don

donbear

Advertisement

TreeBay

Hi Don,

Hope your health continues to improve! *

Pruning time depends somewhat on your climate, but you should be able to prune the junipers, if they are healthy, most any time of the year when there isn't frost and snow in the forecast for the next month or so. *The reason is that after pruning the shrub takes some time to heal and if it pushes new growth, it will be tender and subject to die-back. *This holds for most trees.

Maples (whether bonsai or yard trees) tend to bleed a lot if you cut large branches in the flush of spring growth, but this isn't as much a problem for in-ground trees... Best time for the deciduous stuff is the period *between the disappearance of frost and prior to bud break.

Pines are a little more particular in terms of timing. *Generally, any time it is pushing candles, it is very safe to cut back, but you want to be sure to cut back to a point where you have some branching, and take it easy on the lower branches which will be much weaker than the apex. * You can cut back a fair amount as long as you are cutting back to a strong, viable branch. *It will bleed sap for awhile. *

If the trees have been neglected, you may find them top-heavy, so you will want to trim the top and upper branches and let the lower ones grow a bit to recover some lost vigor.

As a practical consideration, I would suggest that you go ahead and do some pruning whenever you feel up to the task. *In the ground, all of these trees are much more hardy and resilient than they are in bonsai pots!

Regards,

Matt

__________________

Want to be a seller on bonsaiAUCTIONS? Get authorized today!

bonsaiTALK: Over 100,005.36 Megabytes Served this Month!

donbear

Hi Matt,

Thanks for a start back to a good looking garden. *It just seems overwhelming right now.

Thanks also for all your help while I got into the system.

Regards,

don