Keeping Trees Flourishing Through Tree Trimming

Most home garden enthusiasts in a Mediterranean environment partner winter season with the yearly pruning of shrubs and trees. They see a few of the woody plants from leaf and half bearing in mind that plants should be pruned when in their dormancy, rush out with the saw, loppers and secateurs for an excellent session.

Timing is in fact necessary when it comes to pruning, and for that reason it Continue reading is crucial to comprehend the connection in between the climate condition dominating in a Mediterranean type winter season, and the impact that pruning has on the health and vitality of the trees and bushes. When both these criteria are put together, it ends up being clear that pruning should be put-off till completion of the winter season.

Mediterranean environment winter seasons are cool and generally mild with regular rainstorms coincident with relatively cold snaps. In the sloping regions, or in valley bottoms, temperature level lows may reach down to -6 c, conditions, which while precluding numerous cold-sensitive species, are favorable to deciduous plants such as grape vines or roses. Typically though, extended periods of warm, dry weather condition are common, with temperatures settling around 18-20c or more, only for cold snaps to return later on in the winter season.

It is this rotating in between cold and warm that is liable to trigger problems. The reason is that pruning induces dormant buds to sprout, and soft, tender, juvenile growth to develop, only for this growth to be hammered by a late frost. Damage to the young tissue is not just a source of bacterial and fungal infection, it likewise suggests that the plant has lost important energy that it can not quickly recoup.

On the other hand however, it is best to prune deciduous trees and bushes during their dormancy, since pruning in the spring, triggers the plant tissue to "bleed" the sap that is rising at this time; leading to major loss in nutrients and energy potential.

Pruning can be therefore be timed to 5-6 weeks prior to the last frost is likely to occur, which is the approximate time scale for brand-new growth to sprout from a pruning cut. So if in your location, frosts do not happen after the middle of March, it is safe to prune around the start of February.

The moderate winters in lots of Mediterranean type regions, enable the gardener to grow many tropical and sub-tropical species that are limited in terms of their hardiness to cold. A few of these lose their foliage when the temperatures drop, but this does not indicate that they respond to cold conditions like naturally deciduous plants. (i.e. species that originate from cold-temperate environments) On the contrary, as they tend to be especially prone to cold, they need to be regarded, when it pertains to pruning, as evergreens.