Pruning a Camphor tree

Question from John:
I have a Camphor tree that was planed in August of 2010.  It has since grown about 4 ft and has filled out.  filled out so much that tow main branches almost snapped from the weight of rain.  We have since tied them to large stakes.

When and exactly how do I trim and shape this tree with the hope of having a well shaped Caphor tree that will have an umbrella effect in our yard?

Answer from Pat:
I think I should start by telling you that Fact Sheet ST-157, November 19, 1993 of the US Forest Service on Cinnamomum camphora (camphor tree) states “Avoid upright multi-trunked trees” and also “It may be difficult to maintain a lawn under this tree.” Unfortunately I see you have a multi-trunked tree and it’s growing in a lawn. Now for your questions:

“Scaffold branches” are the major structural, trunk-like branches that originate off the trunk of a tree. Now let’s discuss the problem that you have a multi-trunked tree when what you require is a single trunk tree. You should remedy this situation immediately. Step one is to choose the strongest trunk and cut off the other competing trunks immediately down to the ground. Afterwards, if any more sprouts or suckers spring from the ground, always cut them off right away. You just want to let one upright trunk grow, not several.

After you have cut out all trunks except one I suggest you once again contact the landscaper and hold him to the terms of his contract to come and prune your plants or perhaps have a family member or friend phone for you and insist this be done. Your situation sounds like a bit of a sad tale to me because I get the feeling your landscaper is giving you the runaround and taking advantage of you because of your age and this is not right. Also he evidently sold you a multi-trunked tree which is a serious no-no.

If your landscaper never shows up, hire a certified Arborist to train the tree, or begin the training of the tree yourself, following the step-by-step instructions I already sent you. Taking your probable physical ability into consideration and if money were no object, it would have been better for you to begin with a boxed camphor tree from a tree farm that was already growing with one trunk and appropriately pruned for use as a street or landscape shade tree with proper scaffold branches in place. If you can afford it, perhaps you should have the existing tree removed and replaced with a boxed single-trunk camphor tree now.

For homeowners who have no problem with training a young tree, it actually is far better to begin with a small 15-gallon, single-trunk tree. Once in the ground and properly cared for, a smaller tree will actually out-pace the growth rate of a larger boxed tree and you will end up getting a proper shade tree sooner. But for elderly folks who have a problem shaping and training their tree and certainly don’t want to be climbing ladders, it would be better to begin with a boxed tree that is already trained and shaped.

Now in regard to your question about why you should leave the lower, bushy side branches on the bottom of the trunk, this is because they will help your tree to form a strong trunk. I explained this before but maybe I should say it another way which is this: It is unwise and improper to cut low branches completely off a young sapling shade tree. You can cut them short, that’s okay, but don’t cut them off since cutting them off will weaken the tree and make it take much longer for you to get a proper shade tree. It’s fine to prune the bottom ones so they are only a foot or two long and leaves don’t trail on the ground, but be sure to leave them attached to the trunk.

Perhaps you are having difficulty following the instructions I gave you. If so, I suggest you purchase a good paper-back pruning book, such as “Sunset Pruning Handbook” and follow the instructions in that book for training young trees. Get one that includes diagrams and then you will immediately understand what I’ve told you to do. (My Sunset pruning book includes diagrams showing the young shortened branches left on the bottom of the tree, like I have told you to do.) But the most important thing to do first is to be sure to cut off the extra trunks at ground level right away since they are sapping the energy of the main trunk of your tree and it will now may take another year at least for your tree to develop a proper head and trunk with appropriate scaffold branches and a rounded crown.

Regarding your fern pine trees (Podocarpus gracilior, Afrocarpus falcatus), prune these in spring or summer, so now is fine. Cut back the side branches to make them stronger, as your landscaper told you to do. This will encourage them to be bushy, but whatever you do don’t remove these side branches. Growers grow P. gracilior in two ways. One way is to grow them on a single trunk grown from a seed. This way of growing it makes for a strong trunked street or lawn tree. The other way is to start them from cuttings. Podocarpus grown from cuttings are sort of floppy and willowy. This type is used as a bushy hedge and this looks like what you have got. I am supposing that these are planted to act as a sort of screen hedge, not to grow to full size as trees. The branches will be floppy and flowing so you want to cut them short and encourage the tree to become a hedge. Another way to go is to wind the branches of one of them around the branches of the tree standing next to it and they will make a natural graft to create a sort of espalier and hide the wall. But be sure to pinch the tips. It’s up to you how you want to train them, either as columns or as a green, leafy hedge. You may need to stake them to keep them erect. Once you have trained these trees to the size and fullness you want you can then shear them with hedge shears, if desired.