Showing posts with label Palm Tree Prunning Techniques. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Palm Tree Prunning Techniques. Show all posts
Monday, August 18, 2008
In the process of creating Medicinal Monday's I also thought it would be a good idea to add in a Tuesday Tips series. Every Tuesday I will post a new Gardening Tip. For my first Tuesday Tip I have chosen Palm Tree Trimming Techniques. I have seen a lot of Palm Trees that are damaged when they are trimmed because people don't know enough about them, so I thought I might give some basic rules to pruning Palm Trees.
The first major rule to pruning Palm Trees is to avoid pruning them at all. Palm Trees are designed to shed their fronds on their own. Just because a Palm frond is turning colors or maybe even browning does not mean that it is done contributing to the tree. The browning of fronds is a process called Trans location of Nutrients meaning that the Palm Tree is recycling the nutrients of the frond back into the heart of the Palm Tree itself. If you remove the fronds during this process then you weaken the Palms defenses against molds and fungi. Allowing the process of self-pruning or self-cleaning is especially important to the species of Palm Trees with a "crown shaft" which is a green shaft located just below the fronds.
If it is necessary to prune the Palm Tree then a general rule is applied to Palms that you should not cut fronds that hang below a parallel line to the ground or the 9:00 to 3:00 o'clock rule. This is called a Hurricane Cut or a Candle Cut and is very damaging the the tree. If a Hurricane cut is repeated over and over it will create a condition know as a "pencil top" which is the narrowing of the trunk just below the fronds. The name Hurricane cut comes from the fact that during Hurricane winds, the head of the Palm Tree may snap off where the thinning occurred and become airborne.
So there you have it plain and simple, just don't prune your Palm Trees and they will be happy and healthy. And remember the 9:00 o'clock to 3:00 o'clock rule if you absolutely must trim those Palm Trees. Here are some examples of Palm Tree Pruning. I did not take these pictures.
Here is a classic example of the Hurricane Cut. This technique should be avoided at all costs.
If pruning is necessary, then this is the technique you want to use. Notice how there is a line parallel to the ground. This is called the 9:00 to 3:00 O'clock rule.
I hope you found this post helpful.
The first major rule to pruning Palm Trees is to avoid pruning them at all. Palm Trees are designed to shed their fronds on their own. Just because a Palm frond is turning colors or maybe even browning does not mean that it is done contributing to the tree. The browning of fronds is a process called Trans location of Nutrients meaning that the Palm Tree is recycling the nutrients of the frond back into the heart of the Palm Tree itself. If you remove the fronds during this process then you weaken the Palms defenses against molds and fungi. Allowing the process of self-pruning or self-cleaning is especially important to the species of Palm Trees with a "crown shaft" which is a green shaft located just below the fronds.
If it is necessary to prune the Palm Tree then a general rule is applied to Palms that you should not cut fronds that hang below a parallel line to the ground or the 9:00 to 3:00 o'clock rule. This is called a Hurricane Cut or a Candle Cut and is very damaging the the tree. If a Hurricane cut is repeated over and over it will create a condition know as a "pencil top" which is the narrowing of the trunk just below the fronds. The name Hurricane cut comes from the fact that during Hurricane winds, the head of the Palm Tree may snap off where the thinning occurred and become airborne.
So there you have it plain and simple, just don't prune your Palm Trees and they will be happy and healthy. And remember the 9:00 o'clock to 3:00 o'clock rule if you absolutely must trim those Palm Trees. Here are some examples of Palm Tree Pruning. I did not take these pictures.
Here is a classic example of the Hurricane Cut. This technique should be avoided at all costs.
If pruning is necessary, then this is the technique you want to use. Notice how there is a line parallel to the ground. This is called the 9:00 to 3:00 O'clock rule.
I hope you found this post helpful.
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