Jan 13, 2020 | News, pruning, Tree pruning, tree work
An old apple tree needs a bit of grooming .. but it has to be done over a couple of years
When it comes to fruit
tree pruning you might think that one season will be enough to bring back a tree from a total mess to a well structured, healthy and fruitful tree but no it
isn’t enough. Most of the time you need to allow few years to reshape such tree.
Tree we have done recently had lots of water sprouts ( suckers ) that haven’t been removed after someone else before did what it seemed to me like a major reduction ..
It had some rubbing, crossing branches and some dead ones..
Decision was to remove suckers, crossing / rubbing branches and some dead ones. No reduction this year as this would have been too much in my opinion.
Jan 17, 2019 | gardener, hedge cut, hedge maintenance, News, pruning, tidy up, Tree pruning, tree work
Mid of January 2019 and we are getting busy – pruning, hedge trimming, garden tidy ups, shrubs and trees removal
This week we are fully booked up – just before a forecasted cold snap expected to hit us very soon, but will it ? 😉
What’s been done and what’s still ahead of us is listed below:
On Wednesday some fruit trees pruned and a big leilandii hedge trimming – DONE
Photos below:
On Thursday medium tree to be pruned, and quite a few medium sized budleia trees uprooted – DONE
You can read a review of the above mentioned job here
On Friday a garden tidy up including another budleia removal and privet hedge reduction – DONE
Let’s see what the next week will bring us – hopefully snow !!!
Apr 16, 2015 | News, Tree pruning, tree work
Very recent job to dispose of a fallen tree from a garden.
Feb 20, 2014 | hedge cut, hedge maintenance, News, pruning, Tree pruning
When it comes to hedge maintenance, regular hedge cutting / trimming is the single most important thing to do. Regular hedge trim will make your hedge compact and thick right from the bottom.
Why plant a hedge?
Hedge can be a perfect garden boundary, but the wrong one may give you troubles.
- hedges provide shelter.
- They dumpen noises, reduce strong winds
- The obvious they give you privacy.
- security but not all hedges. Thorny, prickly varieties like for example:
Common holly
Firethorn
Blackthorn
Barberry
Buckthorn
- some hedging plants like photinia give you a beautiful seasonal change.
- hedge supports wildlife. Birds love nesting in them as well as eating some berries.
- unlike wooden fences, hedges won’t need replacing for many many years and they don’t require anything more than regular hedge cutting.
I can’t stress that too much.
Hedges need your commitment to regular hedge cutting / trimming.
All types of hedging need at least one hedge cut a year. Some varieties more than one.
A regular light prune is much better for you and your hedge then an occasional heavy cut.
Power tools do a quick job if done regularly. High and overgrown hedges often need costly specialist equipment or professional help
to get them back into shape.
You can avoid a lot of problems in future if you choose the right hedging plants for your boundary.
Hedge planting – the right choice.
The many benefits of growing hedges on your boundary depend on selecting the right plants for the situation. If you choose an unsuitable variety you could be faced with a range of problems, especially if the hedge grows too big. It will be difficult to trim and may cut out light to your garden or house.
- Its roots could deprive other plants of water and nutrients, and even interfere with paths and buildings.
- Oversize hedges will intrude on your garden space, and may cause problems with neighbours.
- Oversize hedges can be costly and time consuming to cut back and most conifers, including Leyland and Lawson’s cypress, will not tolerate hard pruning.
- If the hedge borders a road or path the local authority could get involved, and insist the hedge is cut back.
Luckily there is a wide range of plants available so it’s not difficult to achieve an attractive healthy hedge – one which will take only as much upkeep as you can manage, and create an attractive feature in your neighbourhood, not a bone of contention.
|
Growth rate |
hedge cutting – how often |
Size if unpruned |
Foliage |
Prickly? |
| Beech |
xxx |
Once |
Large tree |
D/LL |
No |
| Berberis |
xx |
Once |
Large shrub |
E |
Yes |
| Cherry laurel |
xx |
Once |
Large shrub |
E |
No |
| Cotoneaster |
xx |
Once |
Large shrub |
E |
No |
| Escallonia |
xx |
Twice |
Large shrub |
E |
No |
| Firethorn |
xx |
Twice |
Large shrub |
E |
Yes |
| Hawthorn |
xxx |
Twice |
Small tree |
D |
Yes |
| Hazel |
xxx |
Once |
Small tree |
D |
No |
| Holly |
x |
Once |
Small tree |
E |
Yes |
| Hornbeam |
xx |
Once |
Large tree |
D/LL |
No |
| Lawsons cypress |
xx |
Twice |
Large tree |
E Conifer |
No |
| Leyland cypress |
xxx |
Twice |
Large tree |
E Conifer |
No |
| Portugal laurel |
x |
Once |
Large shrub |
E |
No |
| Privet |
xx |
Three |
Large shrub |
E |
No |
| Rose |
xx |
Once |
Large shrub |
D |
Yes |
| Western red cedar |
xx |
Twice |
Large tree |
E Conifer |
No |
| Yew |
x |
Once |
Large tree |
E Conifer |
No |
Key:
Growth rate, for established plants
xxx – over 60cm/year
xx – 30-60cm/year
x – 15-30cm/year
Foliage:
D – deciduous
LL – dead leaves held in winter
E – evergreen
My favourite hedging plant has to be YEW ( taxus )
Classic choice but everlasting and makes an excellent hedge. Doesnt need that much hedge cutting either.
Tidy Gardens can trim/prune most of hedges, but if you are that lucky and have spectacular yew like on a picture above then DON’T call us. Call for a crane ! 🙂
Jan 5, 2014 | News, pruning, Tree pruning
Apple tree pruning
Pictures of “before and after” apple fruit tree pruning.
Winter finally and the right time to prune most of fruit trees.
We moved here in summer 2013 so this was my first opportunity to sort this tree out.
There were loads of apples this year, but majority of them were small and didn’t taste well.
Tree itself looked weak. Hopefully this years pruning will give us great apples in the following years !
After a good prune of your fruit trees the previous year, there should be plenty of blossom and finally delicious fruits the following year !
Dec 24, 2013 | News, Tree pruning, tree work
Tidy Gardens – Tree service
I was doing some garden maintenance in a Lower Earley / Reading area yesterday.
It was in the morning and that was the start of the windy period that last until the morning following day. There was one dead tree in the garden and it started moving about at the base of the trunk when wind picked up a bit.. It wasn’t a huge tree but was about 8m high. Big enough to cause damage to the house if fell down on it. I adviced for it to be cut down. It was a rented place and landlord was informed. I left, but few hours later I had a phone call asking if I could come again to cut it down as wind was picking up..
I set off as soon as possible, and just after I arrived that tree has fallen down. It collapsed onto a fence. I cut it up and removed it off the fence.
Lucky that it did not fell onto a house.
Act in time !
Tree service – Tidy Gardens
