Pruning Guidance

Hi,

This will be my second basic query on the forum. I read a lot about pruning and its effects. but still few doubts are uncleared.

As in pic the branch A is about 2ft long and i wish my branch size to be 1ft. So query is should i immediately cut at my desired length and let it get woody/hard eventually or should i wait till it gets hard and then cut back to the desired length?

second the branch B is 6inch in length and i wish to grow it 1 ft, should i cut it immediately once it reaches its length (1ft) ?

doing these both cuts should i wait for proper season (dormant/before spring) or cut once the branch reach the length i wish...

regards

Pruning cuts can probably be made all year in your climate.
Remember when we prune we want to also develop taper and ramification, so if the eventual goal is a one foot branch we might cut back to 4 or 6 inches the first time,let it grow out and cut back again to 6 to 8 inches, grow and cut again, we want to also develop secondary branching this way

And you usually want to make the cut a cm or so PAST a bud on the branch, though, if you don't, the branch often will die back to the bud anyway. Occasionally, you can force new buds to pop. Much depends o0n the plant you are pruning.

More importantly, are you sure you want the branches that long?

I am not sure what tree you are working on and what your goal is but on most of my bonsai, I try to cut the branches short to create movement and character. Same can be achieved with wiring but the two methods produce different kind or characteristic. It will help give you better advise if you can provide more info (a picture is also great).

Billy M. Rhodes wrote:Pruning cuts can probably be made all year in your climate.
Rt cut back to 4 or 6 inches the first time,let it grow out and cut back again to 6 to 8 inches, grow and cut again, we want to also develop secondary branching this way

ohh.. that means the branch with a cut ,still grows long in the same direction ? sorry for my ignorance but i have always seen the cut to be dead end for the branch (not growing further) so i thought if i cut @ 1ft.. it will be the end of growing and only secondary branches will grow....

inwell wrote:ohh.. that means the branch with a cut ,still grows long in the same direction ? sorry for my ignorance but i have always seen the cut to be dead end for the branch (not growing further) so i thought if i cut @ 1ft.. it will be the end of growing and only secondary branches will grow....

The trimmed branch will not grow, but the secondary branches usually will extend out the same way the original branch is going like =< where each branch doubles after each cut. Keep repeating that and you will have what we call "ramification". Good luck!

I'm trying so hard to stay away from pruning info for at least a year for my tree--it's so hard! Just read a bunch of these posts....

Now I just wanna prune!

(My self control is sufficient!)

Poink88 wrote:

inwell wrote:ohh.. that means the branch with a cut ,still grows long in the same direction ? sorry for my ignorance but i have always seen the cut to be dead end for the branch (not growing further) so i thought if i cut @ 1ft.. it will be the end of growing and only secondary branches will grow....

The trimmed branch will not grow, but the secondary branches usually will extend out the same way the original branch is going like =< where each branch doubles after each cut. Keep repeating that and you will have what we call "ramification". Good luck!

May I add though that if you want to reach good tapering you should let the branches grow as long as they like the whole growing season through and you cut them back next winter. And repeat this process for some years.

...May I butt in?

...what species are you folks talking about here?


Different species will react differently to pruning.


...Some species will develop more shoots... some will even die if pruned hard or left with not sufficient branchlets and leaves, Some specie like some ficus will have sap withdrawal if not pruned properly killing the affected branches.

regards,
jun

jun wrote:...May I butt in?

...what specie are you folks talking about here?


Different specie will react differently to pruning.


...Some specie will develop more shoots... some will even die if pruned hard or left with not sufficient branchlets and leaves, Some specie like some ficus will have sap withdrawal if not pruned properly killing the affected branches.

regards,
jun

Thanks and I agree. I asked initially too but it was not answered or ignored.

@ JUN.. this was just a generalized query about pruning.. not a plant specific ..but the image above is illustration of a Bougainvillea i have managed to grow from a cutting..

this is not regarding actual pruning but wish to clear my doubt with the same image above...

as seen this tree is grown from cutting. mostly the cuttings are linear and pencil thick (not that flexible). how do i manage the stem i.e. cutting piece here to have a tree like looks..some curves/bends/up-downs here and there..?

this cutting cannot be twisted or wired i guess..(quite thick)

regards

inwell wrote:@ JUN.. this was just a generalized query about pruning.. not a plant specific ..but the image above is illustration of a Bougainvillea i have managed to grow from a cutting..

this is not regarding actual pruning but wish to clear my doubt with the same image above...

as seen this tree is grown from cutting. mostly the cuttings are linear and pencil thick (not that flexible). how do i manage the stem i.e. cutting piece here to have a tree like looks..some curves/bends/up-downs here and there..?

this cutting cannot be twisted or wired i guess..(quite thick)

regards

Species identification is very important in asking any question if you really want an honest and objective answer. Like this one for example...If you are talking about bougainvillea, this tree is very tricky for bonsai and you cannot just prune any time you like and any size you want...You also need to consider for this specie the angle of the cut specially on thick branches...reason, this specie will rot easily if the pruning is done during the rainy season, If the angle of the cut is not right water will sip easily on the cut branch specially on the thicker one endangering the branch from rotting from the inside.

but on other species you can cut any time of the year and any angle you like and even without sealing the would it won't affect the health of your tree...that is why the specie and knowing how it will react to a particular treatment is very important. and asking and giving answer must depend on it or knowledge on the species.

regards,
jun