{"id":2852,"date":"2019-08-02T00:06:20","date_gmt":"2019-08-02T07:06:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/hortlib\/pal\/pal-question-579\/"},"modified":"2023-08-08T12:51:11","modified_gmt":"2023-08-08T19:51:11","slug":"pruning-euonymus-shrubs","status":"publish","type":"pal","link":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/hortlib\/pal\/pruning-euonymus-shrubs\/","title":{"rendered":"pruning Euonymus shrubs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is it possible to arborize a large Euonymus shrub (by<\/strong>
\nselectively pruning many of its branches to create a tree shape), as one<\/strong>
\ncan with rhododendrons? I prefer pruning over removal, if that option is<\/strong>
\navailable to me. What tips can you offer for pruning Euonymus in this<\/strong>
\nway?<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It is a little difficult to offer advice without knowing which species of
\nEuonymus you are growing. There are many, some evergreen and some
\ndeciduous. The pruning method varies according to the species. See the
\nlink here,<\/a> from Oregon State University, for information on some of the
\ndifferent species.<\/p>\n

If you would like to get back to me with information about the species, I
\nwill be better able to assist you. For now, here is general
\npruning information and links which may be of use.<\/p>\n

Seattle gardening expert Cass Turnbull<\/a> and the organization Plant Amnesty<\/a>
\noffer helpful pruning hints. Excerpt:<\/p>\n

\n

Punch List for Tree-Likes. Take out:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Dead wood<\/li>\n
  2. Suckers from trunk, roots, or branches<\/li>\n
  3. Crossing\/rubbing branches (the worst ones)<\/li>\n
  4. Branches hanging on the ground<\/li>\n
  5. Wrong-way branches<\/li>\n
  6. Too-far-up\/too-far-down branches<\/li>\n
  7. Parallel branches<\/li>\n
  8. Head back to shorten (if necessary) on shrubs, not trees.<\/li>\n
  9. Tree-likes vary in the degree to which they may be thinned before they
    \nsucker back or suffer dieback. Removal ranges from approximately
    \none-eighth to one-third total leaf area.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/blockquote>\n

    Another excerpt, on arborizing shrubs:<\/p>\n

    \n

    Other people strip up all the lower limbs of shrubs they consider too
    \nbig, making them somewhat reminiscent of lollipops or ostriches. I
    \nhesitate to mention stripping because of these common abuses. However,
    \nthere are some instances where removing the lower limbs of a shrub is a
    \ngood option. It will depend on the type of plant and its location. Don’t
    \nstrip up plants just because they seem too big. Good candidates are ones
    \nthat are actually impeding foot traffic or totally obscuring windows. The
    \nbest subjects are non-suckering tree-like shrubs. Usually they are
    \nbroad-leafed evergreens, such as rhododendrons, pieris, camellias, or
    \nstrawberry trees (Arbutus unedo). Stripping up works best on very old
    \nshrubs. By cutting off the lower branches you are “arborizing” them.
    \n“Arbor” means tree, and you are turning your big shrub into a small tree.
    \nEnglish laurel is a good subject. Instead of a giant oppressive blob, you
    \ncan have an open, sort of oriental-looking, small tree. In fact, one
    \ncould say that most of these plants are trees in their native habitats.
    \nThey start out as shrubs and grow into understory trees in their
    \nadulthood. We just expect them to stay in the shrub-like juvenile stage
    \nforever.<\/p>\n

    Some shrubs can be arborized, meaning that they can be pruned into small
    \ntrees.<\/p>\n

    Pause before you strip, though. It’s a major step. Look inside your shrub
    \nand evaluate how the trunk will look when it’s exposed. Is it fat? Good!
    \nDoes it lean and curve gracefully? Great! If possible, endeavor to leave
    \nsome branches lower down and inside to avoid the stripped or gutted
    \nappearance. To alleviate the lollipop effect, thin out the upper canopy
    \nof leaves, too. It should look a bit lacy and like a tree, not like a
    \nsolid ball. Don’t arborize more than a few plants in your landscape, it
    \nbegins to look silly if you do too many.<\/p>\n

    Be sure to leave enough leaves to collect sunshine in order to feed the
    \nplant. Shrubs and trees vary from species to species in the degree to
    \nwhich they will let you put them on a diet. Trees and shrubs which have
    \nbeen starved by over thinning usually succumb to death in a drought or
    \nfreeze. Be sure to help heavily thinned, non-suckering plants by
    \nsupplying sufficient water and fertilizer.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Is it possible to arborize a large Euonymus shrub (by selectively pruning many of its branches to create a tree shape), as one can with rhododendrons? I prefer pruning over removal, if that option is available to me. What tips can you offer for pruning Euonymus in this way?   It is a little difficult to offer advice without knowing which species of Euonymus you are growing. There are many, some evergreen and some deciduous. The pruning method varies according…<\/p>\n

    Continue reading pruning Euonymus shrubs<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","keyword":[103],"class_list":["post-2852","pal","type-pal","status-publish","hentry","keyword-pruning-trees"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/hortlib\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pal\/2852"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/hortlib\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pal"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/hortlib\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/pal"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/hortlib\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/hortlib\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"keyword","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/hortlib\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/keyword?post=2852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}