Royal Purple Smoke Tree ...

[AlexTheGreat]

I posted about a transplanted one last year and it is still doing pretty well so far, had blooms, etc, this Spring.

My question is - I have noticed as it's bloomed and leafed this year/spring that there are areas throughout (going upward from the ground) the tree/bush that have no limbs, no leaves, nothing. Kind of like it has gaps of nothing but the main limbs here and there. Is this normal for this time of year or any at all? If not, please let me know what I need to do, etc.

Below I have posted a photo so you can see what I am speaking about. Thanks for any help in advance.

Alex

[hendi_alex]

Looks like a healthy tree/shrub to me!

[AlexTheGreat]

Thanks for replying. I will assume the gapping is normal then.

[hendi_alex]

I would just call it variable growth. While younger than my two smoke trees, yours looks very similar to mine. One is kind of variable like yours, the other has no leaf growth near the ground and looks more like a small tree with canopy growth at the top.

[AlexTheGreat]

That makes sense. So, when they get older and bigger in size, will it not be like that (the gappy growth)?

[hendi_alex]

If you google 'smoke tree photo' the results will include about 20 photos. You will see how variable the smoke tree form can be. Some individuals groom the tree to look like a large shrub with growth from ground up. Other trim near the ground, so that the tree has an obvious trunk. That is what I intend to do. But even in that context, the plant will most likely be irregular, perhaps having some open spaces between the foliage.

https://www.google.com/search?q=smoke+t ... =firefox-a

[AlexTheGreat]

For sure. I've googled the photos before when picking out what Smoke Tree I wanted. After looking at the Google photos again, it does seem to be quite variable. I just never second thought it.

And yes, I plan to do the same. Shape it like a tree and not so much like a bush or shrubbery.

Again, thanks for your experienced insight.

[WildcatNurseryman]

Just planted a Golden Spirit Smoke Tree yesterday in my own yard (for a change). I have a Royal Purple on the farm that is about 13 years old and has been shaped into a three trunked tree and it is very pretty that way. If you are going for a fuller look, in Europe they pollard smoke trees to give them a full effect. They have dormant buds all along the stems and if you cut it back really hard from the top those buds will break and it actually produces leaves that are much larger. It is a job that you will need to do each early Spring, but it certainly does produce a different type of look. At the nursery we have two on opposite side of an entrance gate included in a large plantings and the pollarding has kept the tree from getting too top-heavy, as they are a little prone to separating at the base and breaking/splitting if the top gets spread out. Good luck.

[AlexTheGreat]

Thank you so much for that information on polarding. I will definitely try that next spring.