Q:My princess flower bushes
have become very leggy. How far back can I prune them? That
is, is it safe to prune them back to the bare wood, or must
I prune them above an existing green bud? The flowering
is over - can I prune them now? Same question for Cestrum
elegans.
A: Princess flower (Tibouchina urvilleana), a shrub much
loved for its large purple flowers, can be pruned back to
bare wood, meaning wood that isn't leafy. Prune to about
a third of an inch above a pair of dormant buds. These buds,
and perhaps some lower buds, will then grow into new leafy
branches.
Actually, to prevent a princess flower from becoming leggy,
it is wise to pinch branch tips off several times a year.
The first pinching should have been about three weeks ago,
others after later flushes of bloom.
So cut it back now, and then during later pauses between
bloom flushes, pinch off longish branches near the tips
to encourage continued bushiness. Since flowers form at
the branch tips, when you create more branch tips, you encourage
more flowers. When you pinch, also give your princess flower
a little fertilizer. Cestrum can also be pruned back hard
after blooming and benefits from pinching back and pruning
in spring and summer to maintain bushiness.
Q: Our Meyer lemon tree was sheared by a previous gardener
into a ball shape, and, of course, it bore no fruit. The
branches in the inner part of the sheared ball were twisted
and knotted. I took it upon myself to prune the tree all
the way back. Scary proposition, but it worked! We have
had an overabundance of Meyer lemons for 15 years.
Two years ago, I found lemons hanging from the tree only
in pulp form, rind gone. We assumed we had rats, so we cut
the tree back to eliminate the food supply. The tree came
back, bless it, and for this past year we have been again
enjoying the lemons. Last week, again, pulp hanging from
the tree with no rind. Only fruit found in the inside of
the tree is eaten, not the fruit on long branches. Do you
think it's rats? Also, do you think it's safe to use lemons
from a tree that has had "something" crawling
all over it? I don't want to cut the tree back again because
I feel maybe the tree has only so many severe prunings left
in it.
A: Helen Zverina, vector control program manager for the
San Francisco Department of Public Health says you probably
do have rats. They often eat whole citrus fruits, but may
eat only the peel. And she agrees with my opinion that any
undamaged fruit, if washed, is fine to eat.A 12-inch-wide
metal band around a tree trunk can deny access to roof rats,
the climbing kind.
For it to work, though, there can't be other plants, fences,
balconies or other means of access. If there are any palm
trees in the vicinity, banding them would be wise, since
roof rats often live in them. Try to make your garden less
attractive to rats. Clear thick underbrush enough that you
can see the ground at least every 2 feet. Avoid thick growth
of ivy or other climbing plants. Avoid leaving out pet food,
bird feeders or water sources (for example, empty water
standing in pot saucers).
As to the horticultural part of your question, whether to
cut your poor tree back to a nub once again: Please don't.
Better to deny the rats their dinner by removing each lemon
that is forming in a vulnerable location before it can mature.
Look into the tree and see if you can thin out the branches
somewhat, but not drastically, to give the animals less
cover. Hopefully, it will be enough to get the rats to move
elsewhere again without having to brutalize your lemon tree.
Q: My neighborhood has a lot of small businesses and they
all have decorated their yards with ivy. It has been there
for so many years that layers and layers have grown on top
of dead ivy. It has spread over to my backyard in the past
couple of years and taken over the whole fence and then
the little space I have to plant my plants. Last summer,
I spent several weeks taking it all down, cutting down all
the roots and then putting some weed control mat down before
putting down soil and mulch to plant my plants. It looked
great for a couple of weeks, then the ivy started growing
back, and now it's growing faster than I have time to keep
up the cutting. I don't want to use any harsh chemicals
to kill it, but I wonder if you can suggest any way to keep
the neighbors' ivy from spreading over to my yard again.
A: I suspect the ivy in these yards was planted by seeds
in bird droppings rather than being intentionally planted
to decorate anything. Keeping it at bay will require constant
vigilance.
After pondering your problem for some time, I am now wondering
if the best defense might be to talk to your neighbors about
rats. They run under ivy, build nests in thick ivy on walls
and fences, and feed on ivy berries. Perhaps they would
be interested in removing it to reduce the number of rats
in the neighborhood - and, potentially, in their businesses.
For more tips on avoiding rats, see the previous question |
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