When I joined the arbor day foundation, I got 10 teeny trees. I don't have a ton of space, so I planted one, and gave the rest away to people that I know would use them.
I got the 10 flowering tree set, which comes with two of each of 5 different types of trees. I picked one hearty looking one at random and planted it.
It looks very good and healthy after a month or two in the ground, and I am becoming attached to it.
My curiosity finally got the best of me, and I looked it up to see what type of tree I had, and it's a Washington Hawthorn. I read what I could find on the internet about them, and they seem like great trees, what with being later bloomers, and attracting songbirds with their berries that stay on the tree!
Is there anything special I should know about this tree? I would like to shape it through pruning so that it has more of a higher canopy than if it just grew naturally. I know it has thorns, so that is my thought, if the thorns are higher there would be less chance of my kids getting hurt on it.
I have no experience with caring for trees, baby or otherwise, so are there any recommendations for when I should start pruning and shaping it?
Thanks!!!
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bullthistle
- Greener Thumb
- Posts: 1152
- Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 10:26 am
- Location: North Carolina
Thorns will grow on the trunk and trust me they will hurt. Let the tree grow a couple of years before trimming except maybe the lower branches.
Branches that grow towards the center prune off and when you have double branches coming off the stem prune the weaker one. Just selectively prune branches that cross each other. Use common sense if something doesn't look "right."
Branches that grow towards the center prune off and when you have double branches coming off the stem prune the weaker one. Just selectively prune branches that cross each other. Use common sense if something doesn't look "right."