Greetings everyone!
I've started a HUGE project after plenty of research. Yet I still have unanswered questions and hope there might be some here that can help with answering. It involves trimming and thinning a 900' hedge consisting of about 300 Arborvitaes. I should point out that I had zero experience with this task prior to starting.
A third of these trees are mature at about 20' tall, planted in 1996. The remaining are about 8-9' tall with a few approaching 12' and these were planted 4 years ago. All of them are healthy with the exception of the mature ones growing wild and getting too big for their place. None have ever been trimmed with the exception of dead or broken branches. Early on I did inquire about trimming them and was told don't bother...something I now regret!
Here's a few questions for starters...
1) I removed about 20-25 cubic yards of dead needles from under the mature ones. The debris was about 6-8"+ deep and as a result a number of the lower branches were buried. Some even rooted themselves. I freed up what I could by clipping, but there are still some that remain partially buried. By that I mean the branch is exposed now but still firmly rooted underneath it. Some even re-sprouted about a foot away from where it entered the ground. Looks like a mini propagation farm under there! Should I leave as be or cut the branch or?
2) Pros & cons with cutting the tops of the mature ones about 2-3'. The purpose being to open the canopy to sunlight as well as even the tops out. My goal, understanding that it will take a few years, is to cut back the base growth from it's current width of about 6-8' back to 4-6'. Yes the insides of these mature ones are bare due to no sunlight and air flow. So that limits my cutting back right now.
3) Right now my approach to thinning is cutting the vertical growth and oddball branches with excessive growth. I'm also taking a stab at shaping them and leaving selective 'holes' for sunlight to get to the insides....but that's not as easy as it appears:confused2: Any tips or tricks of the trade for this procedure would be GREATLY appreciated!
Here's a few pics of what these trees look like prior to starting. You might say they look great but trust me, up close they need help. I'm confident I'll get it done one way or another. I'm down to my last day of vacation...been off the last week...so I'm out the door and back at it after I post this. I'll check back in later.
Thanks in advance for any info or links etc that might assist me.
I've started a HUGE project after plenty of research. Yet I still have unanswered questions and hope there might be some here that can help with answering. It involves trimming and thinning a 900' hedge consisting of about 300 Arborvitaes. I should point out that I had zero experience with this task prior to starting.
A third of these trees are mature at about 20' tall, planted in 1996. The remaining are about 8-9' tall with a few approaching 12' and these were planted 4 years ago. All of them are healthy with the exception of the mature ones growing wild and getting too big for their place. None have ever been trimmed with the exception of dead or broken branches. Early on I did inquire about trimming them and was told don't bother...something I now regret!
Here's a few questions for starters...
1) I removed about 20-25 cubic yards of dead needles from under the mature ones. The debris was about 6-8"+ deep and as a result a number of the lower branches were buried. Some even rooted themselves. I freed up what I could by clipping, but there are still some that remain partially buried. By that I mean the branch is exposed now but still firmly rooted underneath it. Some even re-sprouted about a foot away from where it entered the ground. Looks like a mini propagation farm under there! Should I leave as be or cut the branch or?
2) Pros & cons with cutting the tops of the mature ones about 2-3'. The purpose being to open the canopy to sunlight as well as even the tops out. My goal, understanding that it will take a few years, is to cut back the base growth from it's current width of about 6-8' back to 4-6'. Yes the insides of these mature ones are bare due to no sunlight and air flow. So that limits my cutting back right now.
3) Right now my approach to thinning is cutting the vertical growth and oddball branches with excessive growth. I'm also taking a stab at shaping them and leaving selective 'holes' for sunlight to get to the insides....but that's not as easy as it appears:confused2: Any tips or tricks of the trade for this procedure would be GREATLY appreciated!
Here's a few pics of what these trees look like prior to starting. You might say they look great but trust me, up close they need help. I'm confident I'll get it done one way or another. I'm down to my last day of vacation...been off the last week...so I'm out the door and back at it after I post this. I'll check back in later.
Thanks in advance for any info or links etc that might assist me.
