Q My neighbor, who is a good gardener, told me I need to get better pruning tools to take care of my trees. She also said I need to get a different kind of pruners. She said mine can damage stems. They look fine to me. So, what should I get? I live in a rural area and don’t have any kind of stores around me so how do I find these tools?
A Your gardening neighbor is pointing you in the right direction. But keep in mind that if you buy cheap tools, they don’t last and you have to buy more. As the old saying goes, “buy right and cry once.”
The pruners that you have, anvil pruners, crush stems and make healing difficult. When you look at the blades, the top blade comes down and contacts the flat bottom blade. That action crushes tissue on the lower side of the stem.
The kind you want to buy are called by-pass pruners. The top blade passes by the bottom blade like scissors when they are closed. They essentially cut the top and the bottom of the stem at the same time.
Pruners are good for small twigs, but if you are pruning larger woody plants, consider also buying lopping shears. They are big by-pass pruners with long handles. If you want to cut small branches too big for loppers, look at getting a pruning saw. Ones where the blade folds into the bottom of the handle are nicer to carry around with less chance you’ll cut yourself.
Pruning saws have very sharp blades and cut as you push and pull. If there are limbs to be cut higher in a tree, you may need a pole pruner. Many of these can cut small limbs 16 to 18 feet above the ground.
If you have trouble finding tools, go online or order a catalog. This also helps you know what these tools look like. A good place to start is with a horticultural tool and supply company called A.M. Leonard, at 800-543-8955 or amleo.com.
Q I live in town and want to plant a tree in my front yard. I have fallen in love with that big maple that has dark burgundy leaves. I don’t know its name but I want one. Is this a good choice for my yard? I see them everywhere.
A That’s the problem: It’s like blue spruce — you see them everywhere.
The tree you are referring to is a Norway maple, called Crimson King. It has its good points and its bad points — you will have to decide whether the yin outweighs the yang.
This cultivar came from Belgium to the U.S. in about 1948. Crimson King is best described as a big, fat tree. The rich maroon leaf color persists throughout the season. In maturity, its leaves are large and overlap each other to create dense shade below it, so grass under the canopy dies from lack of sunlight.
Maples, in general, have roots very close to the soil surface and King is no exception. If the roots grow under a sidewalk or driveway, they can lift the paving. If they grow against the foundation of the house, they can cause cracks or buckling in that foundation. Roots will grow at least twice the length of the branches. Crimson King is a fast-growing tree, if conditions are right, growing more than a foot each year.
The tree grows to about 50 feet tall with a spread of about 30 feet. This puts roots on a mature tree about 50 feet from the trunk. The tree is big and pushy, and if the front yard is big enough, it might work.
Questions? The MSU Master Gardener hot line is at 888-678-3464. Gretchen Voyle is an MSU Extension Horticulture Educator, retired.