Pruning an overgrown Willow
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wipednwired Rank attained: Hazel Tree

Joined: 25 Jan 2011 Posts: 5 Location: Portobello, Dublin
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 2:32 pm Post subject: Pruning an overgrown Willow |
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Hi All,
Just moved into a new place in the Dublin city centre, and there is a large willow in the back garden. I would be inclined to call it a 'tree with pussy willows' because of its size, but perhaps it's just a very overgrown bush. It does not appear to be weeping.
I am new to Ireland, and am just learning about native species, so forgive me if any of this is obvious. I am looking for help with two things:
1. Identifying which species I have; and
2. How aggressively I can prune this tree.
I've pruned all of the dead wood, cross-over branches, as well as the branches that hung over into the laneway, but now I want to cut it back in size. During the past month's winds, it seemed like it might topple over from being so top-heavy.
My impulse is to prune it just *below* the clump of shoots coming out of where I *think* the last pruning took place (I;ve drawn a red line on the pic). But is this too much? It would mean taking about 2/5th of the tree's height away. The tree is about 20-25 feet tall right now, but I think it's been neglected. I am posting pics in the hopes that they will help with identification.
Thanks for any advice!
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phelim_d Rank attained: Hawthorn Tree

Joined: 07 Mar 2011 Posts: 50 Location: Mayo
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Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 9:25 pm Post subject: |
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looks like a goats willow to me... there are many (many) types of willow in ireland and i suspect they vary slightly only from region to region...
willow are very hardy and will take a good cutting back- below what you recommended anyhow... I've heard of people using their branches as stakes and the stakes taking root and growing into trees...
chop chop!
_________________ Searching for the last original Scots Pine... |
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