Magnolias are one of the best flowering trees to plant in your garden. However, you must give them extra loving care to ensure they grow beautifully. This includes proper pruning, especially if you have overgrown magnolia trees.
In this blog post, a trusted tree trimming company in Santa Rosa will show you how to trim an overgrown magnolia tree.
When Should You Prune Your Magnolia Tree?
The answer will depend on whether you have a deciduous or evergreen magnolia. Evergreen magnolias have somewhat thicker leaves that they maintain throughout the year. It’s best to prune this magnolia variety in spring.
On the other hand, deciduous magnolias shed their leaves in winter. You should prune them between midsummer and early fall when their leaves are fully open.
However, wall-trained evergreen magnolias require pruning in summer once they finish blossoming.
How To Trim Your Overgrown Magnolia Trees
You can do more harm than good to your magnolia trees if you don’t have proper tree trimming skills. So, it pays to learn how to trim an overgrown magnolia tree. However, let’s start with trimming an old magnolia tree.
You need a pair of pruners to remove damaged or dead branches and shape your tree’s structure. Try to create an open crown and uniform shape by chopping the branches back to the trunk or a fork.
If you have a mature deciduous magnolia, it may feature vertical water shoots. You should cut these shoots back to the branch or trunk.
You should do the same with a mature evergreen magnolia. Be sure to remove dead, damaged, or diseased branches. You can also trim the tree to shape it.
If you have wall-trained magnolias, you’ll have a much easier time trimming them. Trim out every stem growing into or toward the wall. For stems growing away from the wall, you only need to shorten them a bit by cutting them back to one or two leaves.
You’ll need to follow some special rules when it comes to pruning an overgrown magnolia tree. Suppose you haven’t been trimming your magnolia regularly in the last couple of years. Doing a complete trimming at once can cause major stress.
If you need to remove too many branches from the tree, it’s best to do this over several years. This approach makes the process less stressful to your tree.
Simply remove a few of the unwanted branches this year and some each of the two subsequent years. This way, your tree will have sufficient time to recover from the pruning cuts. Consider working with an arboriculture expert to ensure you do everything right.
Contact Your Local Tree Experts for Assistance
If you need help learning how to trim an overgrown magnolia tree or other landscape maintenance and gardening tips, talk to Empire Tree Experts.
We provide a wide range of horticulture and tree care services, including:
- Lot Clearing
- Tree Trimming and Pruning
- Tree Removal
Contact us at (707) 521-2151 for a free estimate or to learn the significance of tree dormancy today.