The Goderich Signal-Star, 1981-04-29, Page 55•
1
/'lowers can say
"Welcome to my home"
Page 21
Pruning ornamental trees and shrubs
By B. McNeill
Soils and Crops Branch
OMAN'
Pruning, provided it is done
with a little common sense, is
one of the most beneficiakinst
necessary operations in the
.6 maintenance of a strong,
healthy plant. Plants left
unpruned are more prone to
damage from weather, insects
and diseases.
Pruning is, however'; a very
personal thingand other thane
few basic principles, is an
operation ghat each person
must determine, for himself.
Many people, who do not un-
derstand plants and their
growth patterns are often
hesitant to prune. I sometimes
feel that they relate removing.
a branch to the cutting off of
one of their fingers, generally
• not a very pleasant ex-
• perience. Plants, however, are
generally betteroff and grow
better when pruned.
The first principle, in my
mind, is to know your plant
Perk 1113 your 'scape
j
!I,. I,uidscapr}(It mare 110111e,
sur i.tuc scl ul roucn•rc -thcs
!WIC swept for bee\ .and
• ntl,s �,)uing Luger and the
i.tun 00.1 molder and thinner.
Ifo+dull!
Imagine• yourself as Joe'
Am hods and look at the area
around your house. Does it attract
admiring stares, or • do . you fall
asleep ua!king by? If you just
nuke up, you have a problem.
(-hanging a boring landscape
into a dynamic showplace can be
don{• for an investment of a few
' dollars in flower seeds. t. asy-to-
grow
.asy-to-
grow annual flowers come. up
quickly and will give weeks of co!.
or. You can choosc_restful pastel
shades or vibrant warm colors;
depending on your taste.
But remember, decorating your
garden with annual flowers re-
yuhr. d hu hi,n, 0,0111 1, tlidn
p,tinrtrtg !Ion -c 1,11
Roust,. in „n h nn u;ns „! Ihtcc
or Wrote +uttclk'' IIn.1gtsL' thrnt
tall tlouct.' nt lh1.1. kneeIiia-I, ul
the :enter incl 111.s cdgtnE' plants
in bunt
1'ou uould;i'I want to hide the
tiny, deiLOie blooms of the, edg•
ing plants among the tall, leggy
vaneues. I'Ianting in order of
height guarantees^ that.. all the
flowers in your garden can he
viewed and appreciated.
If you're eonfused'about plant
heights, refer to the seed packets
and catal'bgs for plant heights at
Maturity.
Another consideration is the
peak bloom 'season for each
flower you choose. Some varieties
are in full bloom during cool
•
d
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Big 15 hp Diesel water cooled engine gives
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See the full line of Bolens Diesels at:
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r,rthrr. ocher. 1111 Ihclr \,tri,.le in
nin!sun loci I! I,I„onung- time,
u i I; 1,l.t cel, hall hc'
ga;drn iiia hi .1 elon(1nsarrtly 01
0)101, idols ,IIIc 0; het half 1s
ctcr)da+ scgetalimi grim
Don'I worry about .orttpllrnctt•
1aI's color combinations with your
lust.. garden. later on, when you
base gotten the hang of preparing
soil and cultivating, you can
begin to select flowers for color
harmony. Try to avoid the cliche
of red and white -unless you truly
like them -which seems to be the
easy way out for first time
gardeners. Be creative.
No losers
in gardening
Lack of information? Lack
of garden space? Indif-
ference?. No fear of failure,
more than any other reason
keeps non -gardeners ,From
planting their „first garden
seed or seedling, says the
National Garden Bureau.
Gardening is perhaps the
most socially acceptable
hobby in North America.
enjoyed by rich and poor
alike. Yet some people will
go through life having never
succeeded in raising a plant
from a seed or keeping a
houseplant happy.
Non -gardeners need en-
couragement and praise
from their friends and
relatives, never criticism of
their first attempts,
however, humbling. There is
no such thing as a "born
'loser" in gardening.
Trees
• from page 20
the salve of wood. If the shade is
from a saluable tree of great
beauty, cutting it down is out of
the question. artless it is
unhealthy and deteriorating
rapidly.
RemoYing a tree or large shrub
is a hard decision to make. You
can comfort yoursell .with the
knowledge that if a mistake was
made in planting it there years
ago, you arc merely correcting a
mistake.
Pruning Hedges
Always prune a hedge so
that the base is wider than the
top. This allows light to reach
the lower branches and
produces a hedge that is full to
the base.
material. Know its habit of
growth. When you understand
this, then you can prune to
assist the lilant to grow
naturally,
We prune to:
inJHelp plants recover from
ury7,, ate transplanting time.,
In cases where the root system
has been injured in digging, it
is wise to remove some of the
top growth to balance the top
with the root until the new
roots are developed,to support
the top growth.
2. Remove unrestrlicted
growth. Many plants grow wild
and unless they are pruned
regularly will eventually take
over much more space than
originally intended. We prune
to try and keep these plants in
bounds.
3. Combined with the above,
we prune to train growth and
to alter the forte) -of the plant to
fit the location.
4. Remove dead and injured
branches. The removal of
these promotes fast healing of
the injury and- this reduces
damage fromdisease and
insects, and improves the
appearance of the plant.
5. Rejuvenate old 'shrubs,
Plants such as• • lilacs,
honevsnrkle or forsythia often
become tall and leggy and we
Must do some drastic pruning
if we wish to improve their
appearance.
6. Finally; we prune to
promote fruit production, and
colorful twigs and foliage.
Dogwoods, for.ex.ample, have
very bright -colored bark when
the branches are young. As the
plants mature this color is
reduced and to maintain this
color older wood must be
removed on'a regular basis,
Pruning has been done at
practically all seasons of the
year with• little or no damage
to thewplants. However, there
are some specific time; when
pruning is best done.
Pruning at planting time is
of importance for two reasons.
The first is to ensure that the
plant is well establishedthe
first season. The second.
reason is to prune to shape the
plant. Small cuts heal very
quickly and unwanted bran-
ches should be removed then.
Late winter or early spring
is a particularly good time to
prune. There are no leaves on
the plant: the visible outline of
the plant allows one to easily
make decisions as to cuts
reg tired. The plants will ere
actively growing very shortly
and the wounds will begin to
heal quickly. •
Summer pruning , is
generally confined to pruning.
the new growth .to shape
plants. Hedges are •usually
pruned in summer as are
evergreens such as Mugho
Pine, spruce, junipers and
taxus.
A . detailed 'discussion on
pruning individual Tants can
be found in reference' books
available in bookstores or local
libraries. The Ontario Ministry
of Agriculture Ad Food
publishes an excellent book on
the subject. "Pruning
Ornamental Trees, Shrubs and
Vines", publication 483, is
available from your local
agricultural office or by
writing to: Ontario,Ministry of
Agriculture and Food,
Information Branch,
Legislative Buildings, Queen's
Park, Toronto, Ontario, M7A
1A5. l
In summarizing, pruning
.should not be looked upon as
"hurting" the plant. If done
with a little common sense, it
will improve the appearance of
most plants.
+ Keep' proper footing,and
balance at all times - don't
overrea ch.
• + Use equipment with the
stamp of approval of the
Canadian ' Standa.rds,
Association.
A •'green thuntb ' is rather.
nice to have' - especially
when it remains.c(inflected to
your hand-. Take a tip from
St. John Ambulance and play
it safe this Spring when you
do your weekend gardening.
Make
roOI0! i
garden
N
s
Move that old wreck
out of your backyard
and into ours!
!#'s $$$ in your pocket
WE PAY SPOT CASH FOR WRECKS
NIS THE PERFECT TIME TO
�' DISPOSE OF OLD FRIDGES & STOVES
AND ALL OLD APPLIANCES
WE'LL TAKE SCRAP METAL TOO.
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482421.1
C'LER'E-VU
AUTO WRECKERS
Highway 8, three mi. west of Clinton
rr
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