Here are a couple of photos of my 3 9yr old Sequoiadendron trees. They are about 20 feet tall now, and so far have seemed quite hardy, zone 6 hardiness and I am zone 5. This year all the branches from ground up to about 5 feet were pruned off. Was just too congested, they are planted in a triangle and about 6 or 7 feet apart. I am happy that they have grown so well.
DonnaS
And here you can see the tops of the Sequoiadendron trees from opposite direction , berm in front of them. Also in fron of the Sequoidendron is a Pruus densiflora oculis Draconis, Dragon's Eye Pine, DonnaS
Very nice Donna. Congratulations on having some great trees. Sometimes I get some backwash about limbing up conifers but I like it. Especially when they have real strong or interesting bark/trunks. To me, it gives more of the mature look. Mature stands of Spruce may retain limbs to the ground but it seems most pines and the sequoias drop the lower limbs as they age.
Thanks
blaine
Thanks you Blaline for your interest. Most of my evergreen trees except the ones for the windbreak have been pruned up. The trees to the south of my house pruned because they are beginning to block my view of the mountains and the valley. And you are right about the bark/trunks. I have a Betula nigra Heritage Birch which wouldn't be nearly as interesting if one couldn't see the great colored bark on the tree trunk. And my clump of Betula papyrifera has such pretty trunks.
I planted 3 Betula jacquemonti, Oregon Birch , three years ago, they were about 6 or so feet tall then and have grown quite well, so should be attractive in a couple of years.
I have planted more than 80 different trees since I moved here in1995. Lost a few. There was nothing but grass and sagebrush here when I bought the land. As you can tell I love trees. DonnaS
I'll admit I was a bit taken aback at the limbing of these trees. I have two spruces along the road and when the road was repaved, the idiots doing the paving, a) put a cut in the shoulder for runoff right next to the trunk of one of the spruces, and b) cut the lower three feet of limbs off to make it easier to work while putting the runoff cut in the stupidest place possible, ruining the shape and structure of the tree.
I'm glad you're happy with your trees, but before other members run out and start hacking away at their lower limbs, here's another opinion on the matter from the Renegade Gardener: http://www.renegadegardener.com/content/dontdothat2002.htm#1
Wayne
Yep - juuuuuust what I was referring too.
Some valid points here and there but the overall mantra of 'Don't Do It' doesn't fit.
Sometimes you have to make lemonade when you end up with lemons. When that cute little spruce that you or someone planted in the wrong spot starts redirecting traffic you're either going to cut it down for Christmas, keep chopping off sides to get it off the house or out of the sidewalk or driveway... or you can limb it up then start regular snapping of the candles or pruning to keep it within bounds.
heh, heh... Renegade would have a heartattack if he saw the Arctic Palm I made out of a spruce. It's done so well and been such a conversation piece that I'm growing out a stand of 5 other spruces and will train them in the same manner.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. If I could find my soap box I could definitely get on a role about that red bark mulch thats somehow became some popular.
