There's a Hole in My Lilac Bush (Dear Liza)

This was May of last year. It seems very far away right now! 6 more weeks, though. Yay!

Before the 6” of snow that we got last night and today, I actually had some time this week to get a few more of my spring chores done! One that has been on my list ever since we moved here was to get the lilac bush pruned. It is right in front, between the driveway and the…gravel place where my husband parks his truck. (Would that be the second driveway?) It is big and bushy and very hard to see past when you’re backing out of either driveway.

Besides, several of the branches looked pretty bad at the base, and were only producing flowers at the top ends. This brings me to the timing of my pruning job. Normally, you would wait to prune a lilac bush until the end of June—soon after it has finished blooming. That’s because lilacs form blossoms on current year growth. In other words, the flowers blooming this spring were formed last summer. So if you go about cutting off branches right now, you are depriving yourself of blossoms here in another month or so. However, I was doing what some call a “rejuvenation pruning;” essentially—taking out older wood to allow room for new growth. In order to do that, I needed to be able to see what I was doing! It was therefore quite helpful to do it now before any leaves unfurl to block my view!

The basics of rejuvenation pruning

Start with a flowering shrub that has grown long and leggy, has a lot of dead branches interspersed, and/or doesn’t produce many flowers anymore.

Each year cut 1/3 of older growth all the way down to the ground.

In 3 years your shrub will be brand new! (It will look much better in the meantime, too!)

** This works with lilacs, forsythias, spirea, mockorange, and probably others. Those are the ones I have done it on myself.

So that’s what I did. Except I probably took more like 1/2 of the bigger branches all in one go. I also had to lop off several of the smaller, newer ones as well, because they were growing so close to the oldies that I couldn’t even get my saw in there without cutting them off at the same time.

Sing it with me now: “There’s a hole in my lilac bush, dear Liza, dear Liza, there’s a hole in my lilac bush, dear Liza, there’s a hole.”

So yeah. There’s a pretty big hole right smack in the middle of the bush now. However, it looks the worst from this side—driveway view. Front or back views aren’t so bad! Besides, it feels so darn good to get those big lunkers out of there! Every single one of them was either diseased or causing problems with the younger, healthier branches.

There are 3 or 4 more along that right side that I wanted to chop pretty badly, but I’m making myself wait. They’ll go next spring for sure, though!

My handy-dandy folding pruning saw was a lifesaver for this project!

 No loppers big enough for these guys!

I will be interested to see effect this pruning job has my lilac display this year. Even if it drastically reduces the blossoms, however, I am okay with that, because I know that next year will be 10x better!

I read something the other day that said you should prune out any lilac branches bigger around than your thumb. Well, as you can see, these fellows were more like as big around as my arm!

Glad I got this chore done before the snow. Once it all melts off again, I am chomping at the bit to get my flowerbeds all cleaned out, weeded, mulched, and ready for the growing season ahead. 

Pruning the Apple Tree

This apple tree on the side of our house really needed some pruning.

Since we've had a couple of days this week with warmer afternoons, it was perfect timing.

You want to do it while the tree is still dormant, so before buds or leaves start to open up.

I may have mentioned it before, but I really enjoy pruning.

I just think it's fun and satisfying.

I have never pruned an apple tree before, so I watched a whole bunch of videos on YouTube, and now I am an expert.

Also, I hope my tree survives! Ha!

So, here's what it looked like when I started:

It's got branches going every which way.

Last year, there were quite a few apples on the tree, but they were all very small, and none of them really got ripe.

So, your main objective with pruning fruit trees is letting light down into the middle of the tree.

Your fruit will ripen, be bigger, and taste better if it has sufficient light.

First things first on any pruning job: the 3 D's.

Take out any Dead, Damaged, or Diseased branches.

Exhibit A: Can you see the damage on this limb? 

I cut it off just above the branch coming off in the healthy part.

For fruit trees, you also want to take out any that are growing towards the middle of the tree, or crossing through the middle. There was a fairly decent sized branch doing that. It got chopped.

You also want to take out any that are growing straight up (you won't get fruit off those--they are water sprouts, which just take energy from the tree with nothing to show for it), or straight down.

The one video I watched called them "hanger-downers." Those ones won't give you much fruit, either. 

Take out any that are crossing other branches, because over time they will rub off bark, which will allow infection or bugs to set in.

Along those lines, for fruit trees, if there is one branch directly over another shading it out, choose one to chop.

Branches with acute angles should usually be taken off as well.

Here's one that bugged me really bad.

Do you see the "v" formed by those two branches? 

I ended up leaving them, since I didn't have very many bigger branches on that side of the tree.

I may chop the right one off next year, though.

When you chop off a branch, leave a little nub so the collar of the branch stays intact.

This looks really bare now, but I'm confident it will fill in.

Winter pruning stimulates growth, so this tree should put on a lot of growth this spring!

 

It left us with a decent sized pile of firewood and kindling, plus a couple of nice walking sticks. :)

Next I need to prune the younger apple tree in the orchard.

That should be fun, too.

The Wonders of Pruning + Spring Chores

Hey look! It bloomed!

Remember the forsythia bush at the top of our slope that I pruned last summer?

Last year I just happened to notice a few yellow flowers at the very tips of some of the branches, which was the only thing that tipped me off that it was a forsythia.

It was way overdue for a pruning.

Well, what do you know?

It's covered with blossoms this spring!

It has been quite satisfying to look up there and see how pretty it is, knowing that I had a hand in that!

I don't know that anyone else has even noticed it, but it makes me happy!

In other news, I finally got out and got the raspberries pruned last Saturday.

I'm actually a bit concerned about the old raspberry patch.

Several of the old canes I cut down had a nasty white grub hiding out in the middle of them, right at ground level. In the same area, there weren't any healthy fruit-producing canes for this year.

If there were any canes at all after I took out the old, they were spindly and short.

I killed all the grubs I could find, (GROSS!) pulled out all the dead pieces of canes, and even dug around the roots a bit, too.

Even though I won't be around to see the end of it (NMP), I hate to leave it in such a state.

I've done some reading on various extension websites and I think they may be Raspberry Crown Borer--the larvae of a clear-winged moth that has the coloring of a wasp.

I do remember seeing what I thought were wasps around the raspberry patch last year.

I probably did not get them all.

My apologies, future home owners!

Yuck. Grubs are just gross.

Also, they squirt when you kill them. Sorry--TMI, I know.

Meanwhile, the black raspberry canes were going crazy: sliding through holes in the fence to invade the neighbor's yard and sending long shoots behind the shed.

Showing their parentage there, I guess.

Sidenote: those canes are a pretty color right now, kind of a powdery blue, but super prickly.

Anyway, it was obvious some extra means of restraint were needed, so I put up a line of twine through the middle of that side of the bed for them to drape over.

They're much more drapey than the other raspberries.

I also yanked them back through the fence and chopped off about a foot off most of the ends to stop the leggy growth and get them to settle into fruit production.

I am curious what the fruit will taste like--too bad I won't be around for that!

Finished up the day's work by pruning the hydrangeas.

Everything looks so much better once it has been pruned!

Well, ok. The roses maybe not so much.

They look pretty bare.

Never fear, though, they will fill in quickly over the summer!

The rest, though. Definite improvement all around.

Then after I had cleaned up and come in, I looked out back and realized I didn't get the oregano cut back. Strawberries could probably use it too.

Next sunny day.

Meanwhile, my 9-year-old begged to rototill the garden.

So I let him!

Didn't want to deprive the boy.

Pruning the Forsythia

Are you familiar with a forsythia bush?

Even if you didn't know the name, you probably would recognize it if you saw one.

They bloom in the spring, absolutely covered in bright yellow blossoms.

Like this one:

(This is not my bush....or my picture. Picture in the public domain.)

The branches tend to arch out in a fountain shape.

Unless--that is--your forsythia is old and has been allowed to grow any which way.

Then they tend to be tall, ungainly, sprawling, and perhaps blooming a little at the very tips of the branches. As a sort of "in your face" gesture. Or maybe I'm just imagining the gesture.

In any case, there's a forsythia at the very tippy top of our slope that has been bothering me for quite some time. I didn't even realize what it was until this spring (we've lived here for 6 years), when I just happened to notice some yellow blossoms at the tops of its tall, unsightly branches.

Here it is, on the right, pre-pruning.

Can you see the broken branch leaning way down to the left?

It has needed pruning. Badly.

Okay, problem: it's not actually our bush.

It's very, very, close to our side of the property line, but not there.

However, I did talk to our neighbors about it--the ones who are the official owners of the bush.

They: 1-didn't even realize it existed and 2--didn't care what I did with it.

YES!

A quick note before we go any further:

If your forsythia is healthy and pumping out the blossoms in the spring, STOP!

Walk away from the loppers!

This is NOT the right time of year to prune forsythias that just need a little maintenance.

They flower on old wood, so you would be cutting down next year's flowers if you pruned now.

The best time to prune a healthy forsythia bush is right after it's done flowering in the spring.

Okay, thank you.

Moving on...

Now, why did I completely ignore that advice?

Basically, this particular forsythia hasn't been flowering anyway--so I've got nothing to lose, baby!

Also, as I mentioned above, it had one big broken branch and many of its branches were dead from the middle down.

Just about anything would be an improvement at this point. 

Now, I could have just lopped it all off to about 4 inches above the ground and called it good.

(Not sure what the neighbors would have thought of that sort of shrub intervention!)

In another 2-3 years, it would have grown back into a respectable little shrub.

However, I could see several newer shoots amongst the old, decrepit branches.

Before pruning.

See the brown shoots in the picture above, with healthy leaves growing on them?

I didn't want to get rid of those!

The broken branch is on the left there--if you look closely, you can see where it's splitting.

Also, notice how packed the middle of the shrub is--so many branches that you can hardly see what's what.

Plan B for rejuvenating an older, unruly shrub like this is to cut about 1/3 of the oldest branches all the way down to the ground each year, for 3 years.

Obviously, this method takes a lot longer, but it's less drastic.

So that's what I did.

After pruning.

That ugly broken branch was the first to go, and I actually had to saw it off--it was too thick for my loppers. My, it felt good to get that old boy out of there.

To determine which other branches to cut down, I looked to see which had the least amount of healthy growth on them. On many of them, whole side branches were completely dry and could snap right off. Not a good sign!

So, I cut down probably 4 or 5 of the worst offenders--all the way to the ground.

Then I threw the branches down the hill, just because I could. 

They made quite a pile at the bottom!

Here's another "after" picture.

You can see that the middle is much more open now, which will help with blooming next spring as the sunlight will be able to reach the branches lower down.

I was sorely tempted to chop this thick gray branch as well, but I refrained.

I had already taken my quota.

Next year, though. It's gone.

The forsythia bush, after pruning.

2 funny things about this little project:

1. My kids were so happy to have a big pile of branches to play with!

They immediately started snipping off side shoots for toys and walking sticks and such.

This was helpful, as I was able to stuff most of it into the trash can after they were done with it.

[This falls into the category of--why do I ever buy toys for my children?!]

2. I am almost 100% certain that no-one else will even notice or care what I did, but that's okay, because it I notice it!

Even just getting rid of that broken branch has done a lot for my peace of mind when I look up at the corner. It bothered me every single time I saw it!

Perhaps in the spring they will be happily surprised when it blooms.....

* * * * * *

Do you have a forsythia in your yard that could use a good whacking?

If you're local, I'll do it!

(Have loppers, will travel.)

Pruning the Raspberries

 

The weather was just perfect today for one of my most favorite gardening chores:

pruning the raspberries.

No, I'm not kidding. I have been known to ask friends if I can do theirs, once mine are finished.

 

Home-grown raspberries are their own reward. It's hard to beat the sun-ripened flavor, and you don't have to pay $4 per pint for them.

Last year we harvested enough to make one (yup, just one!) batch of freezer jam. 
(I was actually impressed we had that much, with all the snacking that went on.)

Last fall I added 5 more plants: 1 'Fall Gold' bush, and 4 black raspberry bushes.

I can hardly wait for all that goodness!
Maybe this year we'll make it up to 2 batches of jam!

 

 

Before all that glorious berry-picking goes on, however, you've got to do some pruning.

To understand why and what to prune, you need to understand a raspberry's growth cycle.

While the roots can live for years and years, the tops, or canes, only live for 2 years.

 

Year 1: They're called primocanes. Primocanes grow tall, even put on leaves usually, but do not produce any fruit. They do form fruiting buds, though.

 

Year 2: Now they're called floricanes. These are the money-makers! These are the canes that will flower and produce fruit. After the floricanes are finished, they die off completely.

 

Once you have an established patch going, you'll have some of each kind every year.

Pruning out the dead and weak canes gives this year's fruit the sunlight and air movement (for ripening and disease control) that it needs.

 

Late winter or early spring is a good time to do it, before the leaves unfurl.

It's approximately 10 times harder to do it after the leaves come on.

Trust me on this.

 

If you've never pruned a raspberry patch before, it's easy.

You can do this!

 

Here's what my patch looked like this afternoon, pre-pruning:

 

 Basically, it was a hot mess.

 

So what are we waiting for?!

Let's get in there and start pruning!

 

 How do you know which ones to chop?
There are couple of things to look for: 

 

1. Color

The dead canes will be whitish-gray. Often the bark will be peeling off.

The new canes will be reddish-brown, with bark intact.

 

2. Leaf buds

The canes that are going to keep growing this year will have leaf buds forming.

 

This is a cane to leave alone.

Can you see the brown color and the leaf buds?

 

Choose a place to start, and cut down every dead cane right to the ground.

Pull it out and put it aside.

By the way, you're going to want to have some gloves on, and maybe long sleeves--those canes are prickly!

 

 There is just something deeply satisfying about pruning out all those dead canes.

 

Can I come do yours?

:)

 

Now you're left with this:

 

Much better, but you're not done yet!

 

If you want to really increase your berry production, make a second pass through and cut down to the ground any weak or spindly canes, or any that are super short.

 

I would also cut down any canes that are going to make it hard for you to harvest. For me, that's any that are growing right along the fence. My kids like to slip back there and pick in the "tunnel," so those outliers need to go. I had some coming up in the grass outside of the bed that got chopped as well.

 

Finally, cut off the tips of all the canes left.

If you can, find a bud and cut at an angle just above the bud.

(If you forget, it'll be okay--raspberries are pretty forgiving.)

Cutting off the tip redirects the plant's energy. Instead of spending all of its energy on growing taller, it will now form more sideshoots. The sideshoots are what produce the berries, so the more the merrier!

 Congratulations! You did it!

 

That wasn't so bad, was it?

 

 

These probably need to be thinned even more.

The patch should look drastically, way-too-sparse when you're done.

Most sources recommend only 3-5 strong, healthy canes per linear foot.

Don't worry, they will fill in!

 

While you're out there enjoying the sunshine, go ahead and figure out the supports you're going to use, as well, and tie the remaining canes to the supports.

If you are new to this part of it, there are many methods of staking raspberries.

Google it, choose one, and go for it!

 

Then rest easy, knowing that your berry patch is ready for summer.

Bring on the berries!

 

Yum yum yum.