How to form coniferous trees. Formation of large conifers - correct pruning Main purposes of pruning

In European forests and summer cottages you can often find a beautiful evergreen tree - the common spruce. To use it in landscape design, you need to know the specifics of choosing a variety and the rules for caring for plantings.

Norway spruce - description

Due to its distribution mainly in Europe, the tree received a second name - European. In Latin it is called Picea abies and is the type species of the Pinaceae family. This evergreen coniferous plant forms continuous forests in northeastern Eurasia. Found in the Alps, Carpathians and Balkans. Grows in the taiga and central Russia.

Norway spruce grows on different soils, is shade-tolerant, and is not afraid of drought and frost. Life expectancy on average is approximately 120-150 years. However, there are also long-livers. The oldest officially recorded spruce was 468 years old. The tree has an interesting feature - it can produce new shoots from the roots of dead trunks, so the lifespan of individual specimens, taking into account this fact, can reach several thousand years.

What does a common spruce look like?

In appearance, spruce can be easily distinguished from other representatives of the Pine family:

1. The height of mature trees in the wild varies between 30-35 m. In rare cases, it can grow up to 50 m. There are dwarf decorative forms.
2. The crown diameter is 6-8 m. The shape is a regular cone with drooping or spaced branches.
3. The thickness of the trunk is approximately 1 m. On young trees the bark is smooth brown, on adults it is rougher.
4. The needles are 10-25 mm long and no more than 1.5 mm thick. The needles are always sharp and shiny, and can be painted bright green or a darker shade.
5. When wondering how Norway spruce blooms, it is worth remembering that conifers do not have flowers. In May-June, different-sex cones are formed on them: crimson candle-shaped female cones and more faded male cones. From a distance it seems that the spruce is really blooming. After pollination by wind, seeds are formed in the female cones, which are fully ripened by the beginning of next spring.
6. The root system of Norway spruce changes throughout its life. In the first years it has a main, pronounced tap root. Over time, massive lateral processes grow, and the core dies. A dense branched root system is formed, which is located in the top layer of soil. It is not recommended to plant other plants next to the spruce, as they simply will not survive.

How fast does Norway spruce grow?

Taking into account the fact that the lifespan of the common spruce is long - several centuries, its growth occurs unevenly:

1. The first decade the increase is no more than a few centimeters per year.
2. Starting from 11-15 years of life, under favorable conditions, an intensive period of growth of 8-50 cm per year begins.
3. An interesting fact is that the age of an individual specimen can be easily calculated without in-depth knowledge of botany. Every year the tree grows one layer of branches. That is, age is the number of tiers plus another 3-4 years of time when the side shoots have not yet formed.

Norway spruce – varieties

Thanks to the efforts of breeders, several dozen varieties of common spruce have been developed that are suitable for growing in gardens, parks and household plots. They all differ in height, growth rate and location of branches. The most popular varieties:

How to plant spruce in spring?

After choosing the appropriate variety, you can begin planting:

1. Norway spruce has an impressive size, which should be taken into account when choosing a location. It feels good in the shade and next to birch trees, maintaining its decorative appearance all year round.
2. It is not recommended to place Norway spruce seedlings close to fruit crops. The coniferous root system greatly impoverishes the soil.
3. A hole is dug in a suitable place, with parameters suitable for an earthen ball. Standard sizes are 60 by 80 cm.
4. A drainage layer of expanded clay or broken brick must be poured onto the bottom of the pit, which is slightly covered with earth.
5. The plant, together with a lump of earth, is placed in a hole up to the root collar and sprinkled with soil.
6. Then an earthen roller is formed around the seedling to retain water.
7. The plant is watered abundantly, and the tree trunk circle is mulched.

Norway spruce - care

It is believed that the common spruce Kupressina, like other varieties, is an unpretentious plant that can withstand various weather conditions. However, this does not mean that after planting the tree does not need any care. Especially in the first years of life, to preserve its decorative properties, it is necessary to provide spruce trees with:

• regular watering;
• fertilization;
• protection from diseases and pests;
• correct pruning depending on the variety.

Fertilizers for Norway spruce

Unlike deciduous trees, Norway spruce Frohburg does not need large amounts of nitrogen. Applying manure to conifers is strictly prohibited. You can use it instead:

1. Compost or vermicompost, purchased from specialized gardening stores or made independently on the site.
2. Special fertilizers for conifers, containing large amounts of microelements necessary for spruce trees. It could be “Khvoinka”, “Green Needle” or “Fertika-lux”.
3. All fertilizers are applied twice a year. In spring to stimulate growth and in early autumn to prepare the tree for frost.

Pruning Norway spruce

For garden plots, it is preferable to immediately choose a variety that grows to the desired size. If the common spruce grew by self-sowing or was brought from the forest, then even in this case it can be maintained in the required dimensions and desired shape. To do this, you can use trimming and pinching:

1. The pruning procedure is carried out in early March or late August. Young shoots are pinched in May-June.
2. For pruning, choose a sharp garden pruner or lopper, and pinch it with your hands.
3. It is better to engage in crown formation annually, regularly cutting off new shoots. Heavy pruning can disfigure or even kill the tree.
4. The branches are cut to a third or two-thirds of their length. Be sure to leave at least one side bud on each shoot.
5. Experienced gardeners, when recommending how to shape a common spruce using pinching, advise removing the current year's shoots above the growth bud. With one hand you hold the shoot, and with the other you twist the tip of the branch to the required length.

Formation of Norway spruce in the shape of a ball

When there is a need to create a tree of an unusual shape, then for such purposes it is better to choose Inversa spruce. This variety does not have a central trunk or main shoot. Branches without special support grow downwards. To adjust growth, you need to select one shoot and tie it to a support. The branches adjacent to it will begin to grow to the side and down.

A spherical shape can be given to many varieties by following simple recommendations:

1. It is better to trim a common spruce that has reached a height of 2.5-3 m.
2. The lower unnecessary branches and the central shoot are removed.
3. After this, the radial shoots are cut as symmetrically to each other as possible.
4. Next year, instead of pruning, you can get by with minimal pinching of young shoots.

Norway spruce bonsai

The oriental art of growing dwarf trees of unusual shape, bonsai, is considered a difficult task, which can only be attempted after special training. Norway spruce is often used as a hobby, but has certain difficulties in creating:

1. It is not always possible to select a seedling of the desired shape and size, so craftsmen prefer to grow trees themselves from seeds.
2. When the seedling reaches the desired size, it is transplanted into a special vase - a bonsai pot.
3. Trimming of Norway spruce for bonsai is carried out regularly throughout the life of the plant.
4. Formative pruning involves the removal of all branches or their parts that do not fit into the author’s idea. It is best to do it in the fall, when the tree is dormant.
5. In addition to forming the crown, the apical shoot is pinched.
6. To set the desired direction of growth for the branches, they are pulled back with a special wire.
7. The aged effect is achieved by peeling the bark.

Grafting blue spruce onto common spruce

To propagate rare and difficult to root varieties of conifers, experienced gardeners use the grafting method. It is good because it gives a high survival rate if the procedure is carried out correctly:

1. When choosing a rootstock, for example, spruce Pusch, you can take both young trees and those whose age exceeds 5 years.
2. For the scion, healthy apical shoots are selected.
3. If the daughter cutting is much thinner than the mother branch, then use the side splitting method. With a strong scion, it is placed on the side in the butt.
4. The branches are secured with woolen thread coated with wax.
5. A greenhouse is built over the plants for a month, which is ventilated only for a few minutes a day.

Diseases of common spruce

Ornamental conifers, such as the Little Jam spruce, have stable immunity to all kinds of pests and diseases, but they also have their own diseases:

1. Schutte. This is a fungal infection of needles. Manifests itself in a change in shade from green to red or brown. Over time, needles fall out on the affected areas, and the branches become covered with a black coating. If such symptoms are detected, the affected plants are treated with fungicidal solutions every two weeks. Falcon and Quadris have proven themselves well.
2. Fusarium is a fungal disease that affects the root system. This causes the needles to dry out and fall off. It is almost impossible to cure the disease on your own. It is better to turn to professionals who will offer to make stem injections and carry out treatment of the area.
3. Rust. The first signs of the disease are yellowing and falling of needles, and then entire branches. Each needle is covered with peculiar yellow bubbles. To combat the disease, plants are sprayed with fungicidal preparations “Fitosporin-M” and “Abiga-pik”.

Pests of common spruce

Pests of coniferous plants also cause gardeners no less concern:

• spruce moth;
• spruce leaf roller
• sawyer

If malicious activity is detected, you must:

1. Evaluate agricultural cultivation techniques. Perhaps the tree does not have enough sun or moisture.
2. Dig around the tree trunk
3. When infected, common spruce Akrokona must be treated with broad-spectrum insecticides, for example, “Iskra”, “Alatar”.

Norway spruce in landscape design

Conifers can be used in different ways to decorate a site:

1. In large areas, it is recommended to plant large trees, which, as they grow, will become a counterweight to the house or estate.
2. Medium-sized varieties make a beautiful hedge of Norway spruce. Its height can be adjusted independently by trimming and pinching.
3. Dwarf varieties look good in compositions of alpine hills and mixborders, on the slopes of dry streams.

Norway spruce – interesting facts

The famous Norway spruce has a number of interesting facts on the pages of its history:

1. This is the most popular tree for decorating houses and buildings for New Year and Christmas.
2. The oldest Norway spruce is more than 9.5 thousand years old. However, this is not the age of the trunk, but of the root system, on which new stolons are constantly growing. It is considered the oldest plant organism on the planet.
3. Spruce trees shed about a sixth of their needles in the fall, which grow back the following spring.
4. Spruce needles contain vitamin C. Wine made from it was previously considered an excellent remedy for the prevention of scurvy.

Growing coniferous plants on a plot of land involves not only feeding and watering, but also more complex manipulations. Pruning spruce is an important component of tree health, as well as a good way to regulate the density and shape of its crown. But it is not enough to distinguish between the types of “haircuts”; you also need to know the rules for their implementation. How to prune Norway spruce? What cutting and crown formation scheme is suitable for decorative subspecies? How to trim a spruce tree in the garden so that it grows upward? These questions are of serious interest to novice gardeners and lovers of original landscapes. If the conifers in the local area have grown and turned into indistinct, shapeless plants, it is worth thinking about pruning as a radical measure of transformation.

Why do you need a haircut?

The beauty of coniferous plants fascinates and attracts many owners of summer cottages or garden plots. But as the spruce grows, it also needs the correct formation of the crown, stretching the silhouette to an ideal cone. If pruning is not carried out, the tree grows in width, produces many additional shoots, or even turns into a giant. In order for the crown to grow upward, it is not enough just to take good care of the spruce. Ideal New Year's trees in nurseries are obtained through painstaking work; achieving a similar result is quite within the capabilities of the owner of a country house working in the garden on his own.

Due to their slow growth, these trees allow you to maintain the created crown line for as long as possible.

How is circumcision different from pinching?

Nursery owners often prefer to pinch rather than prune plants. But in the case of spruce on a personal plot, this work may turn out to be too labor-intensive. Pinching involves the complete or partial breaking out of young shoots, which noticeably slows down the growth of plants. This can significantly complicate the further formation of the crown, but in a small area it may well replace sanitary pruning for young trees under 3 years of age. Pinching is necessary if the tree is planned to be subjected to curly pruning in the future - this way its needles will become as lush as possible.

Spruce trees are trimmed using pruning shears or a garden saw. Pruning involves cutting down the entire branch or part of the trunk that has been damaged or needs to be removed due to improper growth direction. That is, in this case, more intensive sanitary treatment is carried out, while pinching simply prevents uncontrolled growth of the tree.

Decorative pruning has even more functions and allows you to radically change the appearance of the plant. You definitely won’t be able to achieve this result by pinching.

The right time

Many people are interested in what is the best time to choose for pruning coniferous plants. Spruce can be trimmed periodically for sanitary purposes as the crown grows. But the older the tree, the more often it will have to be pruned. For example, a tree 2.5 m in height will add about 0.5 m in just a year. And a four-meter spruce will grow by 0.7–1 m. Of course, such dimensions are more typical for wild forest species. Cultivated ornamental varieties in the climate of central Russia often do not even reach 2 m.

The optimal time for trimming spruce trees is the end of summer. In the fall, you can also prune, but in such a way that the cuts have time to tighten before the onset of winter cold. The next sanitary treatment will wait for the tree in early spring, before the buds begin to grow. Young trees up to 3–5 years old are not pruned, but pinched, removing tender shoots throughout their growth period, until the beginning of June.

How to trim a tree?

There are basic rules and individual cutting schemes, with the help of which Norway spruce can easily turn into a tree with a spherical or spiral crown. The first pruning to form the crown can be carried out on a tree that is at least 3 years old. The spruce should grow to 0.5–1 m, in the future it will need to be pruned, restraining the growth of the crown in height. To make a cone-shaped tree into a ball, you need to trim the apical shoots, stimulating lateral growth. To prevent the lower branches of the forest spruce from drying out, exposing the trunk, you need to periodically cut off the apical shoots. Young trees are mainly treated with garden shears. An adult spruce, which already has the desired shape, is trimmed with a brush cutter, no more than 1/3 of the shoots are cut at a time. At the initial stage, the length of one bud is manually removed throughout the entire crown, mainly in the upper part of the plant.

In order to correctly perform decorative or curly trimming of spruce trees on the site and give them the desired shape, you should follow such general recommendations as:

• choose the right time - it is better to trim the spruce in cloudy weather, on a cool day; under the scorching sun, the evaporation of moisture from the tree increases, and its needles may acquire a brown tint;
• carry out preliminary sprinkling - wet needles are not so intensively dehydrated and are easier to trim; in addition, there will be no risk of dulling the tool;
• carry out the first treatment on time - it is carried out upon reaching the first year of the tree’s life, after completion of its acclimatization, it is carried out by pinching, with additional sanitary pruning;
• when forming a topiary, take into account the natural shape, following the natural lines of the crown, you can achieve an easier formation of a harmonious and long-lasting shape of the crown silhouette;
• remove 1/3 of the growth each season, which will allow you to form a thick, lush crown in a short time;
• do not leave the branches bare - if during pruning the shoots are completely deprived of needles, they will not be able to continue their growth; the absence of dormant buds will lead to their drying out and death;
• protect eyes, hands, clothes - work in the garden must be carried out in compliance with safety requirements; a flying branch can harm your eyesight or scratch you, and the resin is very difficult to wash off from wardrobe items;
• use only sharp and clean tools - garden knives, scissors, pruning shears require sharpening; during work they must be wiped free of moisture with a dry cloth; upon completion of the procedure, the blades are treated with hot water and soap and dried thoroughly.

Do not trim during the period of resin flow - if the tree begins to secrete resin abundantly, it has entered a period of active growing season, and do not trim at this time.

Shape options

Among the options for curly haircuts: for spruce trees the following can be distinguished:

• pyramid;
• cone;
• sphere;
• cylinder;

They are considered the simplest to implement. Experienced landscape designers can use more complex designs. These include arched and spiral haircuts. Animal figures and art objects are created on well-formed trees by experienced professionals. Beginners simply cannot afford such haircuts, as they require a lot of experience.

Haircut patterns

Using patterns allows you to make the cutting precise and not too traumatic for the tree. At the initial stage, it is better to choose simple forms with clear geometry, then the result of the master’s work will be attractive.

Conical shape

To obtain a conical shape of a spruce, you need to observe, when growing, a proportion between the height of the crown and the diameter of the base 3: 2. That is, a tree 1.5 m tall should have a lower branch diameter of 1 m. To obtain it, you need to use a special wire frame, which will form the desired silhouette. The procedure will include several steps.

1. Installation of the frame. It is fixed as evenly as possible, otherwise, instead of a decorative spruce, a crooked tree will appear on the site.
2. Trimming the top shoot. It is performed in a place where a young sprout remains next to the cut. The optimal height of the top (central conductor) is no more than 2 m. Pruning is done from the north side of the tree.
3. Trimming shoots that go beyond the established form. With a cone-shaped haircut, trimming always begins from top to bottom, gradually moving towards the base. It is important to keep the lines rounded, otherwise instead of a cone you will end up with a pyramid with flat sides.
4. Final removal of protruding branches. Performed after the main haircut is completed. This way the crown will retain its decorative effect longer.

Topiary haircut

When growing spruce as part of linear plantings, decorative or topiary cutting of these trees to resemble a hedge is popular. All species are suitable for these purposes, but Picea abies is most often used. A hedge is formed from young Norway spruce trees no higher than 50 cm. When planting, they should be placed at a distance of 60–100 cm. The best period for pruning is the end of March and the beginning of April.

The pruning procedure according to the scheme includes several steps.

1. Installing a template or stringing cords to limit height and width. It is fixed so that it is clearly visible.
2. Tool preparation. A hedge should not be formed with pruning shears. You will need garden shears - manual, electric or petrol.
3. Cutting off the apical part. It is cut to the level of the cord or template completely, giving a flat shape. The height depends on the type of fence.
4. Trimming side shoots. They are shortened by 1/3 or 1/2 of the length. The optimal option is considered to be one in which the spruce trees completely close their crowns and form dense lateral branching. The haircut is repeated annually until the gaps are completely closed.

Ball-shaped crown

To trim a spruce tree in the shape of a ball, you need to follow a certain pattern.

1. Mount the wire frame of the desired shape and secure it to the trunk. The arcuate lines will determine the shape of the future curly haircut. But experienced craftsmen can cope without it.
2. The top of a formed “fluffy” tree no younger than 2 years from the moment of planting is cut off. There is no need to cut it too short, otherwise the edge will look flat.
3. Moving in an arc from the top of the tree, excess branches are cut off. A line is drawn from the top to the bottom of the trunk. Next, the branches are “ruffled” to identify possible untrimmed areas that could disrupt the ideal spherical shape.
4. Then you can move to the other side. Gradually the crown will acquire the desired rounded shape. A brush cutter gives a cleaner and more even cut, but young trees are better cut with pruning shears.

In the spring, when the plants begin to grow, they begin to form an indoor tree. For conifers, the top trimming method is practiced. This method consists in constantly growing and removing the leading branch. Every year, a new leading branch replaces the old one, inhibiting the growth of the tree. Since such pruning is carried out regularly, the deformation of the trunk will not be noticeable and the bends will not be visible, and as the tree grows they will even out completely. This is the slowest way to grow vertical bonsai and takes many years.
Coniferous species develop “candle” buds in the spring, from April-May to June. If such a bud is damaged, then the tree’s nutrition will go to the injured areas, which is what is required. If it is desirable that the top of the tree “does not fly out”, but a good trunk “fills up” and the branches “curl”, then pinching them is required. In juniper, the buds are pinched regularly throughout the year, and in other conifers - once a year in the spring (usually pinching of conifers is carried out from the second half of April to May).
If the candles are weak, underdeveloped, wait until they bloom. Usually, pinching buds begins from the lower branches: they take the “candle” with their left hand, and unscrew half of it with their right hand. A week later they begin the second layer of branches, another week - to the third, etc. The exception among conifers is five-cone pine: it is pinched from above and after the cones have hardened.
There is another interesting way to control the growth of a tree. When double buds form, the longest one is pinched, and when the remaining smaller one grows to the size of the larger one, it is completely removed, and the smaller one is pinched halfway. There should be a one-week interval between operations.
(based on materials from the book by A. Polyakova “Dwarf Garden, or Bonsai in Russian”)

If you grow coniferous trees on your property, then you need to properly care for them. The appearance and growth rate of the plant depends on this. This article will discuss the basic rules and technology for pruning blue spruce.

Main purposes of circumcision

There are several main purposes for pruning blue spruce:

1. Removing damaged and dry branches from trees, which take up too many nutrients and cause a slowdown in the development of the coniferous crop.
2. Rejuvenation of mature plants.
3. Providing the necessary nutrition to the branches. Pruning also allows for better air penetration into the tree.

Important!If you trim the plants too late, they may slow down in development and lose their beautiful shape.

Best time

You can determine the optimal time for pruning spruce trees using the technology of action. Sanitation work can be carried out at any time of the year, if necessary. Most often, the procedure is carried out when a broken or damaged branch poses a threat to animals or people.

Other types of pruning are carried out at the following times of year:

• Spring is considered the best time for crown formation. It is necessary to carry out work before the start of sap flow in the kidneys, that is, at the end of March or beginning of April;
• to remove shoots and branches that stand out from the general structure of the crown, the best time is summer (mid or late July).

Step-by-step instruction

If you start pruning coniferous trees, in particular blue spruce, you need to trim no more than 1/3 of the green mass. If the plant is healthy, then it will be able to recover quickly enough. It is better not to touch sick and weakened plants, as they will not have time to grow needles by winter.
It is important to choose the right tools to trim conifers: pruning shears, scissors or a handsaw.

In order not to cause harm to the trees, it is necessary to treat garden tools with disinfectants (alcohol, manganese or hydrogen peroxide). Follow the step-by-step instructions so as not to disrupt the structure of the crown or the growth rate of the needles.

Topping

Quite often, gardeners resort to pinching to make the tree crown more lush and dense. The procedure must be carried out at the beginning of summer, when the growth of young shoots stops.

Important!If pinching is done too late (at the end of summer), then new buds will not have time to appear before the onset of frost, so they will form only in the spring.

The pinching procedure is as follows:

1. Break off part of the candle completely.
2. Trim small branches using pruning shears.
3. Remove large ones with a hacksaw or garden saw.

The shoots must be cut carefully so that the dormant buds are not damaged. New shoots will appear from them. On healthy trees, at the base of a pruned branch, about 3 shoots are formed.

Formation

It is customary to start shaping blue spruce in mid-summer. If work is carried out in late autumn or winter, then the area remaining after cutting down the branches will be affected by severe frosts and will suffer. Most likely, crown growth will stop. Most often, crown formation begins when the top of the tree is damaged.

The step-by-step booking procedure is as follows:

1. Remove the top to a developed side branch.
2. Tie a thick strip to the trunk, with which you can straighten the top. This will allow her to remain upright at all times.

Video: formation of blue spruce

Sanitary pruning

If you want to help the plant develop better, then it is necessary to carry out sanitary pruning. You need to regularly inspect trees for damaged or weak branches and remove them promptly. If this is not done, the trees will be affected by fungal infections. This is due to the fact that part of the blue spruce is in an open state, where various viruses and bacteria can easily enter.

Did you know?Blue spruce needles were used by the navigator Cook to create a potion against scurvy. This is due to the fact that it contains a large amount of vitamin C.

The procedure for sanitary pruning is as follows:

1. Examine the tree carefully.
2. If broken or diseased branches are found, they must be carefully cut off with a saw.
3. There is no need to treat the cut area, since coniferous crops secrete resin, which will create an airtight coating.

Care after haircut

After blue spruce, it is necessary to properly care for it. The quality and rate of tree restoration depends on this. First of all, watering and fertilizing should be adjusted. You should also support the coniferous crop with growth stimulants.

Feeding and watering

It is necessary to water blue spruce after pruning using the sprinkling method. That is, water needs to be poured not only at the root, but also on the crown. Watering is carried out evenly. Spruce does not tolerate waterlogging and drought. At least 40 liters of water are poured under each plant. Watering interval is 3 weeks. You should also use strong growth stimulants so that the plant recovers before frost. You need to pour “Epin” (50 g per 10 liters of water) on the crown, and “Zircon” (30 g per 10 liters of water) under the root.

Fertilizing is applied only at the end of October to enhance the frost resistance of a weakened tree. To do this, use a strong solution of superphosphate (100 g per 10 liters of water). The entire volume is poured under each plant.

Mulching and loosening the soil

As an additional protection against frost, the soil is mulched. To do this, you need to lay out a 15-centimeter layer of straw, fallen leaves or sawdust. Additionally, there is no need to cover the top layer of soil with anything, since the pine needles fall off in the fall, which creates protection.

Did you know?The blue spruce trees that grow near the Kremlin were brought to Russia from North America.

It is necessary to loosen the soil before each application of soil and watering. The root system of blue spruce is quite developed. For this reason, loosening is carried out to a depth of 10 cm. You should also remove weeds every week, which can inhibit the development of roots and provoke the appearance.

So now you know how to properly prune your blue spruce so that it grows thick and lush. All procedures must be carried out at the optimal time. This allows the culture to recover and not be affected by severe and dangerous diseases.