Hello and thanks in advance for any advise.
I have 14 Italian cypresses in my backyard. Last weekend I trimmed about 2 feet from the lower foliage thinking it would help them grow taller or that it would look good but my wife hated it.
Will the foliage grow back? Is there a way to help it grow back?
I've posted some pictures here: https://www.mediafire.com/folder/3t25nrx3t64cl/Italian_Cypresses
Thanks,
Rodolfo
Italian Cypress, How To Help Re-Grow Lower Foliage?
Filed Under: Trees, Pruning, Landscaping, Restoration, Techniques & Methods · Keywords: Italian cypress, lower foliage, · 5453 Views
1 Answer
Answer #1 · Maple Tree's Answer · Hi Rodolfo-I live in a location were many Italian cypress are growing everywhere you look. Unfortunately they do not accept hard pruning well with very little recovery of new growth. When limbs are pruned back to old wood, areas of brown needles with no green growth, very little to no new growth with sprout. The Italian Cypress like many conifers will normally not resprout new branches where there are none now. If some new growth does appear on the trunks it will not be as strong and as large as the limbs that were cut off. I have seen some of these trees limbed up like yours but what little new growth may appear from the trunk will usually be small, weaker, and grow more horizontally than upright as the original limbs did. The only thing you can do now is wait and see it enough green growth may regrow from the trunk to make you happy. The trees appear to be healthy so at this time I would do nothing. This much hard pruning can be stressful to the tree as it heals. Because of this I would'nt change any watering schedules or do any fertilization until next spring if it is needed. Trying to force new growth on these trees now many cause more stress for the trees.
Please ask if you have any other questions.
John)
Please ask if you have any other questions.
John)
Additional comments about this answer:
Rodolfo Fernandez · Gardenality Seed · Zone 8A · 10° to 15° F
John, thanks for your thorough answer. I really wish that the foliage will re-grow. Frankly I don't mind how they look now but my wife has been mad at me. While I didn't mean to harm them or to mess their aesthetics, my wife's been showing me a bunch of pictures of Italian cypresses with foliage all the way down, so she's not settling for this look.
Maple Tree · Gardenality Genius · Zone 10A · 30° to 35° F
Rodolfo-Many may like the looks of these trees limbed up. They not only look neat but are more easily worked around if you prefer to keep the landscaping around them more manicured. If your wife would like to have more lower foliage around these trees you could plant several types of shrubs in between these trees with a height that would reach up to the lower limbs of the Italian Cypress. If you like the foliage of the cypress there are several evergreens that would go well with the Italian cypress. A nice contrast to the dark green foliage of the Italian cypress could be added by using some of the junipers or the arborvitae that have a lighter green coloring. As an idea you could use the 'Berkman's Gold' or the 'Little Giant' Arborvitae which have a lighter green coloring for a nice contrast. The 'Blue Vase' and the 'Gold Lace' junipers may be a couple of plants you would be interested in. Besides the Arborvitae and junipers there are other shrubs you could use to fill in with. You can click on the plants tab above and search using key words such as juniper and arborvitae to see many plants files that will give you the plants height and width along with other attributes. You can also use the plant search to find plants that may meet you desires by adding attributes you would like to see in a plant. By adding plant size, usage, your hardiness zone, foliage color, flower color, sun or shade, and other attributes the program will give you a list of plants with these attributes for you to look at. Please don't hesitate to ask any other questions you may have - John
Rodolfo Fernandez · Gardenality Seed · Zone 8A · 10° to 15° F
Wow John, thanks again for another great and thorough answer. I'll be looking into these options! (and of course, share with my wife to see if she'd like to consider planting some of these) Thanks!!
Maple Tree · Gardenality Genius · Zone 10A · 30° to 35° F
You're very welcome. Let me know how you make out.
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