Last week John Eads of Left Coast Bonsai was in the garden to help get my young trees into shape ahead of repotting season. As John studied with Michael Hagedorn, he’s a great resource for developing the dwarf Japanese flowering quince known as chojubai. Here are a few of the trees he worked on this […]
Pruning
Timing for fall pruning when the weather is still warm
Notes about when to hold off on fall pruning.
Cutback and leaf pruning a dwarf wisteria
I’ve been learning this year that doing the same work at a slightly different time can make a big difference. I usually thin my dwarf wisteria, Millettia japonica ‘Microphylla,’ in May, but this year I pruned it in June. Dwarf wisteria before cutback As you can see, the foliage is dense – so much so […]
Leaf pruning Chinese wisteria
Last summer I took a conservative approach to pruning a Chinese wisteria. I shortened long runners down to five or six inches and leaf-pruned to four-to-six leaflets (see “Cutback on Chinese wisteria” for details). This year, I want to cut back to two or three buds per shoot and leaf prune to two leaflets. The […]
Ume observations and cutback
I’ve been curious, for the last month or so, if my ume was planning to drop its leaves this winter. Ume with green leaves in December Upon taking a closer look this week, I noticed that the lowest branch had lost all of its leaves. The lower branch after losing its leaves Although it’s not […]