How Not to Fear Pruning

It's almost the end of January and we are experiencing a lovely warm spell which meant temperatures of +4 Celsius here yesterday and rain.  Yes, a fair bit of it too!  Rain on icy streets is not a good combination.  

The sunrises have been vivid in corals, pinks and yellows the last couple of days and I've shed my winter jacket for my fall coat.  I'm coaxing a mandevilla vine back to health after a mealy bug attack and trying to keep my poinsettia alive.  I just can't seem to keep them happy for very long.  The only window with good light is close to the patio door which gets used several times a day for the dogs. As you know, poinsettias do not like drafts nor heat vents.  This site has both. Sigh.

Did you know the daffodils are blooming in Vancouver already?
Spring is just around the corner!!

So not a lot of exciting stuff going on at the moment.  The stores now have spring product and seeds in place.  Muttart Conservatory is featuring a Chinese New Year display which I simply must go to.  My daughter and her boyfriend went on Sunday and stayed for the fireworks which were quite good I'm told.  

How are you spending your January?  Perusing catalogs, placing orders for seeds?  I'm going to check out Greenland Garden Centre for their indoor garden display which should be completed by now.  I've been going there for years just to see their garden.  It's done on a grand scale and it certainly helps to be around plants when the world around you sleeps in a winter induced slumber.

Did you know now is the perfect time to get out in your garden to do some pruning?  Late winter is ideal for this sometimes dreaded chore because the trees are dormant and you can see the structure without the leafy canopy blurring the tree's form.  

How many of you fear pruning?  Are you afraid you'll kill the tree or prevent it from bearing fruit?  Well, you're not alone but thankfully Laura from Garden Answer has created a short video that breaks it down into easy to understand steps that will leave you confident and your trees healthy.  Laura's brief tutorial focuses on fruit trees.  Did you know apples bear fruit on old wood and plums and cherries bear fruit on new wood?  Garden Answer has the info.  Let me know if it helps.

Black Knot Disease Still Rampant But City Has Found a Promising Preventative

According to Jim Hole's newsletter, Reflect, Relax, Reconnect; the City of St. Albert has found a method which seems to be effective in preventing black knot disease.

Black knot disease has been responsible for killing many trees in the Prunus family, namely Schubert Chokecherry, Mayday, Cherry and Plum.  The disease appears as a black mass on the branches of any of the aforementioned trees and, if left unchecked, will spread through the tree.  If it girdles a branch, or worse yet the trunk, it will kill the branch/tree, respectively.  

As mentioned in my post, Fungal Alert - Black Knot on Local Schubert Chokecherries, if you find this disease on your tree, you must trim the branch back at least one foot below the infected area.  Then destroy the affected trimmings as the disease is air born and spreads easily.  Disinfect your pruning equipment thoroughly afterwards.

The city tree care team has been out trimming the Prunus trees and applying a dormant spray.  Why, you wonder?  According to Kevin Veenstra (City of St. Albert and a certified arborist), a spray of a combination of lime sulphur and horticultural oil helps protect the trees from the disease, stating that the trees they've sprayed remain disease free.

What wonderful news!  I wish I'd known or thought of this years ago when my Schubert Chokecherry had the disease.  Since we have moved, I no longer have that particular tree to care for, but you, my readers, can certainly benefit from this development!!

Please, give it a try.  Spray when there is no wind and the temperature is above zero but before the leaf buds begin to swell.  Let me know if you feel this makes a difference for your trees, please.  

*Warning, the lime sulphur does indeed smell like sulphur but the odour dissipates in time and exposure to fresh air.  ;}

**photos taken by myself and previously posted at Fungal Alert - Black Knot on Local Schubert Chokecherries.

Garden Expert Mark Cullen: Correct Tree Pruning

Pruning Your Fruit Trees in the Dormant Season

The above video is a good guide about pruning practices for fruit trees.

*One thing this video does not mention is to never remove more than 1/3 of the overall growth during a growing season, to do so causes stress to the tree leaving it susceptible to disease, insect problems and deline in health. 

Planting by Moon Phases - Theory or Madness

At the greenhouse, most recommendations for setting out your annuals or planting new perennials, trees and shrubs are dictated by the long weekend, namely Victoria Day.  Generally any time including and after the May long weekend is considered "safe" to plant.  However, there is another school of thought on the matter.  I once heard a customer, who incidentally is a farmer, suggest planting after the full moon.  Why, you might ask. 

The moon is known to directly affect the tides of the ocean.  Is it so far-fetched to suggest the moon also dictates the best time to plant root crops and above ground crops?  Check out this website for an interesting article on just that:  http://earthyfamily.com/A-planting.htm

Increasing Light -- New moon to full moon

Accordingly, during this period one might sow seed for plants that grow above ground ie. peas, tomatoes, lettuce. ( See a guide specific to this topic such as Ed Hume's Planting Guide or The Farmer's Almanac for specifics.)  The waning phases are those when the moon goes from full moon to new moon.  During the 3rd and 4th quarters, it is suggested this is a good time to prune plants.  The water table diminishes and less sap will flow from cut ends.  This is a favorable time for planting, transplanting and harvesting root vegetables.  The most dormant period is during the 4th quarter and is ideal for weeding.

Decreasing Light -- Full moon to dark of the moon

During this time it is suggested to be ideal for planting of bulbs; root crops such as beets, potatoes, carrots; perennials, biennials and bulbs.  It is also a good time to prune shrubs.  (Keep in mind the rule of thumb - prune as necessary once the shrubs have finished flowering.)
 
Again, I recommend referring to a source specific to this topic such as Ed Hume's Planting Guide or The Farmer's Almanac.  I have not experimented with this method so I cannot guarantee results but it is an interesting approach.  Afterall, farmers have been doing it for years.  That must say something as to its validity.