Spruce Pruning

L

Leafguy

New member
Well I got a job coming up to prune a butt load of spruce. Sadly the HO wants to start the process of shaping them into the "mushroom" look". The HO knows this will be an ongoing process.

They were planted in the wrong spot and this is the best option to keep them. This is a task I never do or recommend. But I'm doing it now.

Got some tips on the best way to start the trees out. They are about 12ft tall. Colorado Blue spruce. Whens the best time to do this? Any tips would be great.
 
I feel your pain! My most hated job of all.
I guess they will be essentially 'topped' although the topping cut may be small since the trees are young.
We do them almost any time of year except winter, but I suspect that doing them when the new growth lengthens but has not yet expanded is best - similarly to 'candling' pines.
I may be wrong and someone call call me out on that. I guess wehn the fate of the tree has been decided like that, I'm just less particlular.
 
[ QUOTE ]
HO wants to start the process of shaping them into the "mushroom" look". The HO knows this will be an ongoing process.

They were planted in the wrong spot and this is the best option to keep them.

[/ QUOTE ]

What is so limiting about the site? There are so many shapes to aim for; why the nighest-mtc choice?

pic would be nice.

saw a lot of multileadered spruce in AK; there are some sustainable possibilities for reduction. The species seems amenable to topiary, but i don't see spruce much down here o have not tried it myself.
 
Two things I do that has worked to keep them looking fairly natural and healthy.
1. Do not prune into a limb beyond 3 years, sometimes upto 5 yrs if there is enough interior growth.
2. prune at every whorl or every other whorl a limb or two back at source. Keeps them looking like a tree rather than a big glob of needles. Accentuates the tiers.

Usually start at the top and work your way down, find it is easier to shape this way so that the top does not look to sparse at the end of the prune.

Actually like doing these and worked on one many years ago in the Bridle Path TO. It was a monster shroom. When I finished taking the final top leads out, instead of snakin my way back down thru the centre I did 40' slide down the bows on the outside. YeeHah!
 
Thanks for the tips guys.

The trees are in large planter pots(can't be moved) and each surrounded by structure that will not allow the tree to grow greater then a 15ft diameter. As well the height will become an issue. It's and architectural guidelines thing. Sorry no pics yet.

I explained all the complications with it's location. This plan will actually be the most cost effective.
 
I'm not a fan of shaping spruce but if it's done well and regularly, they can still look "nice".

Don't even think of using gas or electric shears.

We use hand pruners and loppers to shape, all the while clipping well below the final edge to allow light to penetrate into the canopy and to avoid the foliar shell that results from regular shearing. I think Ropeshield's plan of removing entire whorls or branches can work if the client is okay with the much thinner outer layer of foliage that results. Ultimately, the tree will like that better. When we shape spruces, they've usually been shaped by a HO or a HO deceased husband and then we're called in to continue the work. Removing entire branches to the trunk isn't an option in these cases since the branching is so tight to begin with.

I try to talk the client out of spruce shaping whenever i can.

vince
 
ooooh i can add to this. i worked on a christmas tree farm here in the islands. instead of taking full rings of branches off take them off in an alternating spiral pattern. cut out every other branch and go up to the next ring after every cut. think in your head "cut, skip, up to next ring, cut skip up to next ring". it allows a more natural appearance of the tree while allowing you to shear the sides. this way the shell will not block all the light. it looks pretty good i must say.
 
if they are going for a mushroom shape you may want to add that if you do this it will require monthly-yearly pruning to take off the epicormics that will grow out of the bottom wounds. we see this when crown raising cook island pines. you strip lower branches off and then in a month they start sprouting out again.
 
We'd use a long sword type of knife to shape xmas trees. Shaped about a thousand a day. Nothing fancy about looking for worls and that, just wack 'em with a hedge trimmer. I've also seen a spruce hedge that was kept at 4' for 30 years then the property changed ownership and the hedge grew. From the road you wouldn't know they were ever pruned back. They're now 20' normal looking spruce.
I leave that work for the guys who mow lawns.
 
Leafguy- look up Profile or Cambistat. I have used these growth regulators in the past but I have not used them on conifers. Fairly easy to use, soil drench around the base of the tree.
 
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