When is the best time to prune pine trees? Pruning conifers or how a beautiful evergreen crown is formed

It has both male and female cones. Life cycle Scotch pine is about 400 years old.

Sporulation in pines begins at about 30 years of age. At this time, the development of the pine is not completed and the tree is at the stage of "puberty".

Scots pine development life cycle

The first development cycle of Scotch pine is pollination and fertilization. After it, the scales of female cones are glued together with pine resin. The next stage is fertilization, which will occur in 12-14 months. Pollen will germinate, a pollen tube will be formed from a vegetative cell, and a generative tube will give rise to two sperm. For fertilization, only one sperm is needed, the second will die. As a result of the fertilization process, a zygote is formed. She will give life to the embryo, and the ovule forms a seed with a margin nutrients in the endosperm. The seed coat is formed from the shell of the ovule. Further, the cone grows, woody. 2 years after pollination, they begin to droop, their scales diverge and the seeds are released. After separation from the mother plant, the pine seed can be dormant for a long time. But as soon as they come favorable conditions, the embryo begins to grow rapidly.

Scotch pine seedlings: care

The next development cycle is seedling germination. After 1-2 weeks after sowing the seeds, the first shoots begin to appear. If the seeds were sown in a box, then it can already be exposed to the sun, but it is imperative to monitor the level of soil moisture. The soil should be damp to the touch to a depth of a few cm. If the plants lack sunlight, the shoots will stretch out, resulting in seedlings with a high first branch. For the same reason, it is necessary to clean the plantings from weeds in a timely manner. After all, even a slight shading on their part reduces the growth rate of pine seedlings.

If pine seedlings are bought, then you need to pay attention to the root system. If it is bare, then this is the purchase of a deliberately dead tree, since the roots of conifers begin to die within 15 minutes after shaking off the soil from them. The fact is that it does not have time to restore the root system, as it would have done hardwood, having previously thrown off all the foliage. The evergreen pine crown, which the plant cannot just get rid of, requires nutrition and moisture and draws them from the skeletal roots. The roots, in turn, do not have time to grow roots and nourish the needles at the same time.

Then at the end of autumn - the beginning of winter, it is necessary to make sure that the seedlings “leave” under the snow without weeds. It is very important to remember that it is not recommended to cover pine beds with covering material, since such “care” can cause the development of a fungal infection. Pine like any other softwood, perfectly tolerates winter, without suffering from frost.

Formation of the crown of Scots pine

It turns out that it is possible to form a crown in a pine tree. And to do this is quite easy. To do this, use the method of pinching a young shoot. As soon as the young shoot of Scotch pine has finished its growth, but has not yet had time to form needles (that is, it is a “candle”), it must be pinched (not cut!) to the desired length. Usually they twist half of the shoot with their fingers. This plant will not cause much harm and the wound will quickly heal. Most conifers are formed in this way.

The shortening of the apical shoot stimulates the intensive growth of lateral shoots. So the crown becomes much thicker. Pinching is performed in May-June, when the needles are just beginning to separate. After that, the branch stops growing for a year. As a rule, after this, new buds begin to form, several side shoots. The tip of the branch becomes fluffy and thick. Pinching can only be done once a year.

If the pine shoots are no longer “candles”, but formed branches, then the formation of the crown of Scots pine is also possible. This may be needed for thinning inside. The peculiarity is that on the old branch, the sleeping bud will not wake up after pruning. Therefore, do not leave hemp, but immediately cut the knot into a ring.

An important value for the formation of the crown is the place where the tree grows. If the pine is in a well-lit area, then the crown will be lush and rounded. Otherwise, the tree will begin to stretch and throw off the lower branches.

Formation of the Nivaki pine - garden bonsai

Nivaki - bonsai-style formation. Today there are several types of bonsai tree decoration. Some are thinner, while others are thicker. There are also forms that are as close as possible to natural look plants. And there are those that are very strongly stylized as bonsai.

Stage pre-training involves thinning out the branched, most picturesque pines. To do this, some of the branches are removed, and the remaining branches are shortened slightly.

When creating, it is important to remember that you cannot immediately remove many young shoots covered with needles. The formation must be carried out in such a way that a sufficient number of shoots that feed from the root remain. The basis of competent formation is the gradual removal of unnecessary branches over several years. As a result, peculiar plates are formed on the abandoned branches. To get a more picturesque appearance of the tree, you need to try to arrange the remaining branches as evenly as possible. It should also be noted that the growth of branches from one shoot is not allowed, they should not intertwine or cross. As an exception, sometimes the side branch can be bent to a horizontal position with wire or strong braid to create the illusion of horizontal side branches hanging down. In Europe, this method is rarely used.

Despite the fact that Niwaki and bonsai are a way of crown formation, they represent different styles formations. The differences are that the bonsai technique involves cutting, expanding and shortening the trunk at the base. At the same time, the bark is torn off, the tissues of the trunk are killed and bleached. Nivaki does not use such tricks.

Nivaki is a garden tree, root system which is not specially designed. However, once every 2-3 years, the tree must be replanted, observing generally accepted horticultural technologies.

Bonsai is a plant with a limited root system, which in without fail washed and shaped.

The above-ground part of bonsai trees is trimmed and plucked, while niwaki is usually shaped by shearing. If necessary, the bonsai is fixed with a soft wire; natural rope and bamboo are used for nivaki. Style for bonsai (triangle rule) is a must with all its components: look, time. Nivaki does not require this. The "elbows" of bonsai, unlike the "plates" of nivaki, do not have a flat surface.

Many people think that pine is not the most suitable tree for suburban area, because, growing up, it creates a solid shadow on large area. Only a few of them survive under it. ornamental plants. However, with proper pruning, pine can become a worthy decoration of the site, and both young and adult specimens can be pruned.

Types of pruning pine

Coniferous trees, like any others, need care, one of the elements of which is the removal of part of the shoots or branches. Depending on the purpose, there are four main types of pruning of Scots pine:

• rejuvenating
• formative
• healing
• combined.

Healing pruning

This procedure is performed if the territory already has mature tree which it was decided to leave on the site. At the same time, old dry branches, shoots, affected various diseases. It often happens that skeletal branches are also cut if the crown is too thick, and the owners want to make it more openwork and visually lighter, or to give symmetry.

Sanitary pruning of pines is also carried out to balance the trunk growing at an angle. In the latter case, the procedure acts not so much as a therapeutic, but as a preventive measure.

Pruning that defines the shape of the pine crown

This type of plant care is conditionally divided into two types - shaping and decorative pruning. We say "conditionally" because both options allow you to give the tree the intended shape. Only in the case of form pruning pine common crown grows as naturally as possible, and when decorative, it is given the shape that best matches the design of the landscape. For example, when they want to introduce elements of the Japanese style into landscape design, in particular, garden bonsai - niwaki.

Anti-aging pruning

Healthy trees and shrubs with a developed root system begin to actively grow new branches in case they experience a lack of sunlight. This property is used to rejuvenate old plants. Thanks to such kronirovanie all useful microelements are used to build new greenery, and not to maintain the vital activity of old branches.

Combined pruning - crowning, which solves not one, but two or more tasks, for example, rejuvenation and healing.

You do not know how or do not know how to properly carry out this procedure? You do not have enough time, strength and health to independently perform the removal of old branches? No work experience for high altitude, and the pine has already grown quite tall? Call our landscape studio M.Art. Our arborists will professionally and quickly perform all the necessary work.

When to prune Scotch pine?

Pine crowning can be done in spring and autumn. The choice of season depends on what goals you need to achieve.

Pine tree formation ordinary spring pruning is done if it is necessary to obtain a decorative crown or treat a tree. It should be remembered that it is possible to make a “haircut” for Scotch pine only when the frosts have ended and the active growing season has not yet begun. In other words, from March to June. In autumn, pruning is done only in order to slow down the growth of the plant, and it is undesirable to touch adult plants. It should be remembered that you can not do kronirovanie if the temperature drops below 3-5°C. Dead branches can be removed all year round.

In autumn, the ends of old branches are cut off, and those branches on which there are no growth points are also removed. At the end of spring, the so-called candles are removed by a third - shoots on which the needles are still soft, unfluffed. In the first years after transplantation, the plant should not be crowned, since the thickness of the trunk depends on the number of branches.

M.Art Landscape Studio will help you trim young and old trees. To do this, we have modern equipment and experienced arborists who know the techniques of industrial mountaineering.

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Cultural cultivation of coniferous plants involves constant care for their health and beauty. Pruning pine and spruce is a useful operation that has a positive effect on the condition of the tree.

Why cut pine and spruce?

There are several types of pruning popular coniferous trees.

• Sanitary pruning.

This is the most common way to help a plant. Broken, weak and damaged branches are regularly removed. They pose a danger to the plant itself, as they sometimes cause fungal diseases. Such branches can break off and damage surrounding objects or bystanders, especially when strong wind or other adverse natural phenomena. Sanitary pruning can be done on a large specimen if the tree will shade the area too much. In this case, the lower branches are completely removed - after that, other plants can be planted with pine.

• Rejuvenating haircut.

Spend on an adult pine and spruce with large quantity bare and dry branches to stimulate the growth of new shoots.

• Decorative pruning.

The most popular type. The procedure is carried out on coniferous trees, which act as a hedge, and when grown using the bonsai technique. When cultivating pine and spruce in their usual form, regular pruning is also carried out. The procedure improves the shape of the crown, and, if necessary, inhibits the growth of the tree, which is especially important for tall varieties.

When is work done?

Sanitary pruning is carried out at any time of the year. Work is carried out immediately if there is emergency situation, for example, a large branch has broken and poses a threat to surrounding people, animals or buildings.

In the spring they form a crown, create a compact top and give the pine and spruce a decorative look. Time spring pruning depends on climatic and weather conditions.

Young shoots of the current year are called candles. Works are carried out when they reach maximum size, but the needles have not yet begun to bloom. This usually happens in June.

In summer, it is appropriate to prune young shoots that extend beyond the crown. In young plants, extra branches can be removed until the end of summer. It is not recommended to do this later: before the cold weather, the cambium does not have time to stand out, which “heals” fresh wounds.

Anti-aging haircut is carried out in the fall. The main growth zone is located at the ends of pine and spruce shoots, so over time, old trees lose their lower leaves and lose their attractiveness. They cut off the ends on the bare old shoots, leaving part of the needles on them. In spring, dormant buds will wake up on shortened shoots and new young branches will grow.

Pruning late autumn and in winter time not recommended: cuts become vulnerable, freezing of wood is possible.

The result of pruning depends on the condition of the tree. A healthy and vigorous plant will tolerate the procedure easily. In a very weakened pine or spruce, dormant buds may not wake up, so work is not carried out on such a plant.

Features of crown formation

A coniferous tree is a wonderful decoration for any garden. Along with Scotch pine (green), varieties with a grayish, silvery and even yellowish tint of needles have become widespread. With regular pruning, the decorativeness of the tree increases without worsening its general condition.

Pine and spruce pruning tactics depend on the growing method. Necessary work differ depending on whether the plant has traditional form common downy tree, used for hedges or cultivated in Japanese style. Each pruning has its own goal, the main task is to imagine in advance what result should be obtained.

• Traditional form.

Many coniferous trees beautiful crown formed independently. For example, usually does not need pruning blue spruce, acquiring a dense evergreen cap with age.

With the help of decorative pruning, a tree can be given an original shape. A beautiful pyramid, a flat hemisphere, a cone or a cylinder - the option depends on the skill and imagination of the author, as well as on the type of wood. You can create coniferous masterpieces in the form of animals and people, but only very skilled craftsmen can do such work on spruce and pine trees.

More often, the usual planned pruning is carried out, its scheme depends on the desired shape and condition of the plant. Only trees older than two years can be subjected to such a procedure.

• Hedge.

When growing pine in the form of a living coniferous hedge, pruning is carried out annually. The top is removed for the first time when the plant reaches the required height. This will stimulate the growth of side shoots and reduce the gaps between adjacent specimens.

• Nivaki style.

This is japanese art cultivation garden trees, which is often used in the cultivation of pine and spruce. It differs from the bonsai style known to many in the way it is grown. "Bonsai" - "a tree on a tray", and the roots of nivaki are not limited to a small pot, but develop in freedom, directly in the garden. Depending on the style of nivaki, pine or spruce is formed in different ways. Like how straight tree with a triangular crown shape or at an angle to the ground. Monkaburi - original way pine formations. At such a tree, one very long horizontal branch is left, which is located above the entrance to the garden. In Japanese monasteries and temples, old niwaki-style pine trees are especially revered.

To create a tree in this technique will take a lot of time and effort, it is a long and painstaking process. They are determined with the desired height of the plant, regularly remove the "extra" branches and form a crown. New shoots annually need to be shortened by more than half their length. Creating a pine or spruce in the style of nivaki consists of pinching candles, removing some of the needles and cutting. This is a creative process, each plant needs an individual approach.

Pine emits a lot of fragrant amber resin. After pruning, the tree heals its wounds on its own with this bactericidal substance. All work should be carried out with gloves, because the resin is difficult to wash. AT additional processing The cut does not need preparations.

How to cut?

A disinfected tool is used to carry out the work. Depending on the age of the tree and the thickness of the branches, a pruner, garden shears, a small hacksaw or a file are used.

There are several types of pruning.

• thinning.

Remove poorly located branches that spoil the appearance of pine or spruce. In a too dense crown, over time, some of the shoots die off due to insufficient sunlight. Too close neighboring branches can damage each other. Timely thinning helps prevent such problems.

Before work, they inspect the tree, remove the unnecessary branch completely. The cut point is made short. They try to process it with a knife so that there is no hemp left.

• Pinching.

This method helps to form a denser and fluffy crown of the plant. It is carried out when young shoots stop growing at the beginning of summer, and the needles are already beginning to separate from the stem. During pinching, part of the candle is partially or completely broken out.

Small branches can be cut with a sharp pruner, and large ones with a garden file or a hacksaw. Remove parts of the shoots carefully so as not to damage the dormant buds, from which new shoots will appear in the future. At the base of a truncated branch, 3-4 new strong shoots usually appear, on weak plants there may be fewer of them. The crown becomes fluffy, acquires a rounded shape.

With a late pinching (end of July - August), the kidneys do not have time to form in the current season. They will appear only next spring.

• Pruning.

This is the most frequent way change the appearance of a pine or spruce. When pruning, part of the tree trunk is removed. The operation is performed on both young and adult specimens.

The young tree quickly stretches, adding about 15 cm annually. If desired, an adult Scots pine over thirty years old with the help of correct pruning can be formed up to two meters high. In nature, such plants grow above 10 meters.

The pruning scheme for pine and spruce is due to the apical type of growth of these plants. After removing the upper part, it will periodically be necessary to remove the remaining neighboring shoots: they tend to replace the remote top over time, tend to occupy vertical position. On mature wood, dormant recovery buds do not germinate, so the formation of the plant begins in young age.


Trimming Tips

1. For one haircut, no more than a third of the green mass of the plant is removed.
2. Work is carried out regularly, long breaks or cessation of pruning will spoil the result of previous work.
3. Trimming pine and spruce begins at a young age, when it has a compact shape.
4. When pinching, they usually remove up to 2/3 of the growth. During pruning, 1/3 of the branch is removed.
5. First year after planting coniferous plants adapt and take root in a new place, additional intervention will not benefit.

Care after the procedure

Pine and spruce are undemanding to soil quality, humidity and temperature. The mode of watering and fertilizing after pruning does not change. It should be remembered that frequent and thoughtless haircut weakens the plant and can cause various diseases. The main task is to carry out the work correctly and in a timely manner.

The coniferous beauty will thank you for the neat care appearance and excellent health. She will delight you with an elegant evergreen crown for decades.

For the Japanese, growing bonsai is a whole philosophy that combines the spiritual and physical side of the process. To an ordinary person to achieve success, it is necessary to treat this matter with love and patience. You need to have some knowledge about how to make pine bonsai. It takes a lot of time and effort to grow bonsai on your own. As a result amazing plant will long years give joy and beauty.

Traditional bonsai must meet the following characteristics:

1. Trunk. It should be powerful and strong, with a pronounced base and protruding roots.
2. Branches. There are few branches, their lines should be harmonious and clearly visible. The trunk and branches of bonsai give the tree that very unique bizarre image.
3. The form. The Japanese bonsai pine must meet one of 15 classifications. To help a novice or experienced gardener, drawings, diagrams, photographs or your own fantasies and wishes.
4. Pine in miniature should look like a tree growing in vivo.

The main task when creating a bonsai is to achieve a slow growth of the plant. This is achieved in several ways: frequent pruning of tree roots and shoots, artificial restraint of growth, the use of special types of soil, special ways of caring for and watering trees.

How to grow pine bonsai outdoors

AT landscape design bonsai pine takes pride of place. Its obvious advantages are original form, unpretentiousness to growing conditions, resistance to low temperatures, high level adaptation.

Observing certain conditions, you can grow this miracle tree right in the ground:

A real bonsai is a visually old tree. The effect of aging is achieved by artificially bending and landing branches with the help of weights and wire. For the impression of a long-growing pine tree, the bark is specially cut in several places with a knife edge.

Formation of bonsai from Scots pine

Scotch pine can be an excellent basis for self-cultivation bonsai. From deciduous trees conifers are distinguished by two stages of growth per year, which should be considered when creating pine as a bonsai. The first wave of growth is late spring and is expressed in the lengthening of the branches. The second wave occurs at the end of August and is characterized by thickening of the branches.

In a few years, you can grow a bonsai from Scotch pine with your own hands in a pot:

Scotch pine bonsai should have a strong and developed surface root structure (nebari). Root growth is achieved by several growing seasons, as a result, the tree should firmly and confidently hold on to the ground.

If you plant young trees from pots in open ground, then you can get garden bonsai from Scotch pine. This is done in the fifth or sixth year of the plant's life. The advantages of growing in the garden are the rapid growth of the power of the trunk and the sufficient height of the tree. Before transplanting, the crown and trunk of the bonsai must be fully formed, that is, its proportions by this moment already fully correspond to the desired ones.

The formation of pine bonsai is a balance between the creation of nature and man. In order not to disturb the harmony, several bonsai can be planted in the garden from different types trees, surrounding them with objects and plants similar in style and mood. transformation ordinary tree into a beautiful dwarf counterpart is a fascinating and interesting activity. Bonsai pine will become a real decoration of the garden with individual outlines and lines inherent only to it.

Video about planting pine bonsai