You are giving me ideas for one in my yard… do this during dormant season you say?
@spurious, I haven’t seen any significant difference in the ability of a Bradford pear to recover well from a topping based on the season in which the work is performed. Since we work year-round and the work is done whenever the customer requests it I have experience with it at all times of the year.
I’ve got to take an updated picture of that topped oak that I showed y’all earlier. This one will also show another nearby oak that wasn’t featured in the previous picture, and will demonstrate one of the many reasons we don’t top trees such as oak.
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@murky … not for long… im afraid.
That limb is starting to look sad now too.
I wonder if i cut it off about 6 inches below that limb… if it would send out any more shoots/limbs this year ???
Would be nice to use that rootsystem for grafting next spring.
It looks like it may be on the South side of the other tree, at least it isn’t getting shaded when the picture was taken. That’s good.
I think European plums will send out adventitious shoots, or limbs from hidden buds or something if you prune it lower.
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cleaned up, pruned, raked and planted some beans at the bottom of the Corner of Despair.
behind the tree you can see my leggy grape vine and a “johnny Appleseed” apple tree that’s hanging on for dear life.
on the left is my partner’s mint patch and on the right are a few tulips too. little stick fence so the dogs don’t roll on the bean seeds.
You may be able to use the half naked evergreen as free grape “pergola” or at least as a post in a trellis system.
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A good idea. I’d suggest kolomikta kiwis since they’re not overly vigorous. You can plant a male somewhere marginal, you only need a few flowers for pollination. Then “train” the female up the dead tree and let it sprawl. Keep it to a single stem for the lower several ft. to avoid too much of a rats nest. The best kolomikta I’ve had is kruplodonaya (spelling), a Michurin selection that makes big tasty fruit. It’s hard to find. I managed to nick a cutting from a huge vine at a well known botanical garden (always bring you’re pruning shears to those places!) i can send you some cuttings sometime if you can’t find it or want to try rooting them. They’re pretty easy. I have Sept. Sun too- aka Sentyabraskaya (also Michurin bred)- and it’s OK but not anywhere close to the quality of argutas. They taste a bit like soap actually. Not bad, but I seldom eat very many of them.
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it’s a bean pole this year. I just put up a grape “trellis” along the fence for the grapes behind it going the other way.
an apple tree may go behind it in the corner there- I could put a dwarf in I think.
pretty sure the rest of the branches will be gone by the autumn. and I’ll have a tall trunk to grow onto with beans every year
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If one of those fences are south facing, you could try espalier along the fence.
I let it get very long for no reason but I’m making the attempt after I prune for next year. it made a good amount of grapes last year so I didn’t want to mess with it too much then
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It looks like a little old human bent over it’s walking stick. Crazy hair (leaves) up high.
I like it!
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