Ginko A framing?

Jeff_Cochran · Nov 13, 2012

Can a ginko be A framed and look ok afterward? I have only canopy cleaned or lightly Canopy raised these trees in the past, so i don't have much experience with the affects of reducing cuts on a ginko. I took 2 4' dbh water oaks out of a customers front yard, due to hypox and fear(personally i think they could have just been reduced),the ginko has a heavy phototropic growth pattern toward the neighbors house. no growth on the toward my customers house and a dying top. the tree is 45' ish and 20" dbh the neighbor wants the tree to look good and be safe for his property as now all the wind and ice load will be on the ginko which has been sheltered it's whole life. i will post pics in a little while as i'm going by there to finish up the sod and a couple of plantings i did and will post pics afterward. suggestions?

JeffL · Nov 14, 2012

As young trees they are very strongly pyramidal, I've done maybe 25'ishthe sized trees for shape so no comment there. There's usually a codom stem hidden away in there, maybe you'll find something convenient to cut back to. Don't thin it out too much on the sunny side, it will sprout back off the trunk pretty heavily. I say go for it, or at least get a start on it and explain it mat take a few cycles to get it where they want.

easyphloem · Nov 14, 2012

When you say "can a Ginkgo be A framed?"

Are you talking about pruning it to look like the letter A?

Do you do this type of pruning a lot?

SZ

oceans · Nov 14, 2012

Jeff, any idea why the top is dying? That's a soft tree.

Winch · Nov 14, 2012

"Do you do this type of pruning a lot?"

lol

Jman · Nov 14, 2012

haha i see where EZ is trying to take this......

TC · Nov 14, 2012

Jeff, do you mean like this? if so, the answer is yes it would seem.

TreeCo · Nov 15, 2012

[ QUOTE ]
Jeff, do you mean like this? if so, the answer is yes it would seem.

[/ QUOTE ]

I bet those are ginkgo cultivars.

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/trees-new/cultivars/ginkgo_biloba-table.html

http://www.jfschmidt.com/articles/ginkos/

flyingsquirrel25 · Nov 15, 2012

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Jeff, do you mean like this? if so, the answer is yes it would seem.

[/ QUOTE ]

I bet those are ginkgo cultivars.

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/trees-new/cultivars/ginkgo_biloba-table.html

http://www.jfschmidt.com/articles/ginkos/

[/ QUOTE ]

I was going to say, those dont look like any ginko we have around here. If you tried to prune (heavy)ours to look like those I think you would have a suckery mess.

Jules_Grebe · Nov 15, 2012

I have done some reduction on ginkgos, but most of it was subordination on younger trees(12 dbh or less). I did reduce one side of a large ginkgo (24"). The reduction was not for structural reasons and was one sided to clear a view. Most of my cuts we under 2" with a few around 3-4". All of my cuts were good reduction cuts to lateral branches 1/3 the size of the cut. There was some sprouting but those were minimal and I thinned or removed them 2 years later. IMO suckers aren't a bad thing. They provide energy right where the tree needs it. I think suckers are a small price to pay for a tree that is less likely to fail. I say do it.

This discussion does make me curious about the one I pruned. It has been a couple of years and I am going to check it out.