The heat is ON…
 
Summer Work
 
Over the years, I’ve noticed that I tended to do major work on the trees in the wintertime, but during the summertime, I wasn’t advancing the trees as they grew.  I am working on a Zelkova that I cut back to 15” from a 48” “finished” tree a few years ago.  I let the branches go for several summers, cutting it back hard in the winter, and looked back to see that I really hadn’t gotten anywhere.  This year, I decided to stay on top of it; pinching every shoot from 5 leaves back to 2 leaves.  Anytime a shoot stretched out to 5 leaves, I nipped it back to one or two.  This year, the tree has responded with growth so rampant, that every day it needs a little attention, and it’s getting quite full.  It’s still a few years away from a “finished” state, but had I worked on it this way a couple years ago, the tree would be further along.
Summertime work is just as important as the major operations that are carried out in the wintertime.  Usually it’s as simple keeping a pair of scissors on the bench and tidying up the trees as part of daily watering.
 
Here are some July tips
Feed well, using plenty of Nitrogen and supplement with foliage drenches of fish or kelp fertilizer, add new cakes if necessary.
Watering becomes a twice-daily chore now, and you’ll want to move tender trees into more sheltered locations.  Beeches, hornbeams and azaleas that appreciated lots of sun up until now will start to wither in our heat.
Pines candles are mostly open by now, candle-cutting starts at the beginning of the month for Black Pines by removing ALL weak candles…found on lower and interior branches.  Those branches get a head start putting out the second flush of growth before removing medium-strength candles 10 days later. Watch water needs now, we want them on the dry side as new growth emerges.  20 days after removing weak candles, remove the remaining, strong candles.  Feed well and watch the tree put on a new flush of tiny needles!