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Category: Pruning

Hartlage Wine Calycanthus

Hartlage Wine Calycanthus, Calycanthus raulstonii ‘Hartlage Wine,’ is an underused large shrub that ticks all the boxes: gorgeous blooms, long season of bloom and easy to care for.

Where does Hartlage Wine Sweetshrub Grow?

Hartlage Wine Calycanthus will grow in full sun or shade. However, you’ll get more and larger flowers in full sun.

Calycanthus likes average to slightly moist soil.

How large does Hartlage Wine Calycanthus Grow?

Hartlage Wine Calyucanthus grows 12 feet tall, with new growth extending 3 to 4 feet from the previous year.

Hartlage Wine Sweetshrub is a fast grower; the more sun, the quicker it fills in.

When does Hartlage Wine Sweetshrub Bloom?

Hartlage Wine Calycanthus blooms four to six weeks, beginning early May in USDA Hardiness Zone 6.

The flowers are three to four inches in diameter and have a crimson-purple color that is gorgeous.

The more sun Hartlage Wine Calycanthus receives, the more it blooms. In deep shade, there are still flowers.

Hartlage Wine Sweetshrub foliage fills in through the season. By October, the leaves fill in dramatically.

The leaves are glossy and grow quite large.

How Do You Prune Hartlage Wine Calycanthus?

Perform heavy pruning immediately after bloom for the best display next year. Hartlage Wine Calycanthus easily recovers from heavy pruning.

Crossing branches and branches that grow away from the shrub should be removed. Then, reduce the overall height of the shrub by one to three feet.

I’ve never had a bad year of bloom, except for reduced bloom and more petite flowers on plants in deep shade.

If you’re planting Hartlage Wine Calycanthus as a naturalizing shrub, pruning isn’t necessary. After 4 to 5 years, the shrub will develop into a thicket 10 to 12 feet tall.

Does Hartlage Wine Sweetshrub have a Fall Color?

Hartlage Wine Calycanthus has a yellow fall color.

My love for Hartlage Wine Calycanthus has only increased since making this video.

Hartlage Wine Calycanthus is a must-have for the gardening enthusiast in USDA Hardiness Zone 6, along with Dwarf Fothergilla and PeeGee Hydrangea.

November 3, 2023
How Does a Tree Heal

A tree forms callous tissue to cover wounds. How quickly a tree heals depends on the size of the wound and where it’s cut.

The Sugar Maple cross-section at the top of this post shows a well healed wound. You can see the cut and the callous tissue that closed the wound.

Below is the same wound from the outside.

This Choke Cherry stump grew around suckers cut years before. I can’t say the tree was ‘healing’ but the picture demonstrates how a tree envelops objects.

In elementary school we’re taught to count a trees rings to learn the trees age. Growth rings also give us a clue to a trees health.

The growth rings on this White Oak are very close for many years. There may have been a drought, lighting strike or a pest attacking the tree.

The rings are so close because the tree was healing from pruning and lost a lot of its canopy causing stunted growth.

The Three Cut Method of Pruning

When splitting wood I see all kinds of neat things demonstrating how trees grow. The video below showcases healed wounds and shows the three cut method for pruning trees.

If you just want to learn about the three cut method skip to the second half of the video.

February 6, 2017
Prune Lawn Trees High

I just returned from an evening walk with Theo and my forehead burns from a fresh scratch.

Theo walked around a tree four feet from the road. As I went around the back a branch caught me 3 inches above the eyes.

I did have a flashlight. I was looking at the ground for footing and suddenly smack!

This is a great example of why it’s so important to prune lawn trees above people’s heads. Assume folks will be walking in the dark and can’t see where they’re going.

People driving down the street or your driveway also appreciate not having their cars scratched.

A final friendly tip. Don’t leave stubs on a tree, especially at eye height, where someone can lose an eye.

Theo our Great Pyrenees mix puppy. He’s 90 lbs at just over a year old. What a sweetheart. He loves people, dogs, cats and creatures of all shapes and sizes.

September 22, 2015
How to Prune a Tree Hydrangea – Part 3

In the last video in my series on How to Prune Tree Hydrangeas I show you the results of our effort. A tree hydrandgea full of flowers.

This winter I hope you will get out and try pruning your tree hydrangea. I know you can do it!

By John Holden

August 25, 2013
How to Prune a Tree Hydrangea – Part 2

Over the winter I showed you how to prune a tree hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata). In this video I show you the new growth emerging on the same shrub. I hope this video gives you the confidence to try pruning your tree hydrangea.

By John Holden

August 25, 2013
How to Prune a Tree Hydrangea – Part 1
Prune your tree hydrangeas (Hydrangea paniculata) after growth has stopped in the fall or before new growth in the spring. Tree hydrangeas can take a heavy pruning with ease. Don’t be afraid to prune them.

Your goal when pruning tree hydrangeas is to:
1. Remove crossing branches.
2. Remove dead branches.
3. Remove last years flower buds.
4. Thin out weak stems to encourage larger blooms.
5. Make room for new growth.
The first time you prune your tree hydrangea it’s probably going to take a while. Take it one cut at a time and you’ll do fine.

The video above goes into all the detail you need to get the job done. Please post any questions in the comments below.

By John Holden
July 14, 2013
How to Prune Using the Three Cut Method

There is plenty of information about how to prune using the three cut method. Today I’d like to show you why to prune using the three cut method.

When pruning trees and shrubs we want the wound to heal quickly. The quicker the wound heals the better your tree or shrub can seal out attack by disease, rot, and insects.

The three cut method lets your trees and shrubs heal quickly.

How to Prune Trees and Shrubs Using the Three Cut Method

We are going to make three cuts with our pruning saw to remove a branch.

First Cut

Cut from the underside of the branch about a foot from the trunk. Make this cut about a third of the diameter of the branch. If you’re pruning a large branch remove limbs farther out to lighten the load.

Second Cut

Cut from the top of the branch about half-inch to an inch outside the first cut. The undercut you made in step one will prevent the bark from peeling and damaging the trunk as the branch falls.

Third Cut

Now it is time to make the most important cut at the trunk of the tree or shrub. There are two parts of the tree you should know about at this phase.

Branch Bark Ridge – The ridged line of bark along the crotch of the tree.

Branch Collar – The swollen growth along the branch.

Your goal is to cut the branch just outside the branch collar and never cut into the branch bark ridge so the cut will heal quickly and seal out insects, disease and moisture.

I look for the swollen part of the branch and try to prune just outside.

If you cut into the Branch Bark Ridge of Branch Collar you can injure the callous tissue of the tree and it may never close the wound, exposing the tree to disease and rot.

Conclusion

If you take a little extra time to do it right your trees and shrubs will thrive. Be sure your pruning tools are sharp, it reduces the effort involved and improves your cuts. Now go out and have fun!

By John Holden

March 25, 2013
Selectively Pruning Evergreen Shrubs – Part 2

In the first part of this series I showed you how to selectively prune evergreen shrubs. Now I’d like to show you one of the greatest benefits of this pruning method.

By selectively pruning your evergreen shrubs you can control their height indefinitely. Every time you prune you are cutting into the shrub, so the shrub stays the same size, or gets smaller, with pruning.

Measure Twice, Cut Once

In the video above I show you the results of a Japanese Holly that was heavily pruned. The shrub bounced back quickly and within four months all signs of pruning were gone.

I don’t recommend people new to pruning start with such an extreme example. If unsure how your shrub will respond prune some of the branches deep into the shrub. If they don’t grow back there will be enough other branches to fill in.

I have Japanese Holly (Ilex crenata) growing in deep shade and the shrubs are extremely leggy. Using selective pruning on these holly won’t make them more dense, there isn’t enough light. The shrubs still look better because the growth is at different levels of the shrub, not all at the tip.

What About Flowering Evergreen Shrubs?

You can selectively prune flowering evergreens too. The key is to prune right after bloom. If you prune a flowering evergreen, such as a rhododendron (Rhododendron spp.), that blooms on the last seasons growth too late you can remove the next years blooms.

I hope you’ll try selective pruning, your shrubs will be glad you did.

By John Holden

February 9, 2013
Selectively Pruning Evergreen Shrubs – Part 1
Why do people get out their hedge shears once a year, usually during the heat of June or July, and prune their evergreen shrubs like a new recruit in the army? Yes Virginia, there is a better way!

If you want healthy, attractive and easy to care for evergreen shrubs try selective pruning.

Benefits of Selectively Pruning Evergreen Shrubs

Selective pruning has many benefits.
- Your shrubs will have a natural look, and be more forgiving of pruning mistakes.
- Your shrubs will have an open habit to allow more air and light to enter, resulting in less insects and disease.
- You can control your shrubs height indefinitely.
How to Selectively Prune Evergreen Shrubs

You can selectively prune many evergreen shrubs, such as:
- Boxwood (Buxus)
- Holly (Ilex)
- Yew (Taxus)
- Andromeda (Pieris)
Do heavy pruning in late spring to early summer and continue with minor pruning throughout the season.

Use a sharp pair of pruning shears to cut the branches at varying lengths throughout the shrub, try not cut them all on one plane.

Prune with the result in mind, knowing what you want the shrub to look like. Then, one branch at a time, thin out the branches by cutting them back into the shrub. Your goal is to cut the branch where there’s new growth or back to a crossing branch. Work your way around the shrub pruning some branches a little below your desired height and some branches way inside the shrub.

I begin pruning where the foliage is most dense and cut some branches deep into the shrub to allow air and light to enter.

Next, I work my way toward the outside of the shrub cutting some branches about half way.

Finally, I level out the ends of most branches to give the shrub a loosely manicured look.

Take your time and everything will be fine. The beauty of selective pruning is that if you make a mistake there will be other branches to fill in.

I have trained many on this pruning method and assure you it’s normal to be a little nervous the first time you do it. Take your time. After a few shrubs you’ll get the hang of it. By the end of the season you’ll wonder why you ever bothered with a hedge trimmer.

By John Holden
February 5, 2013