A beautiful day. Mostly clear with a gusty breeze and highs in the low 70's. Today, the hornbeams along the east fence line were the center of attention. These hornbeams are Carpinus Betulus ‘Frans Fontaine’, a variety of European hornbeam, part of the birch family. They are known for their columnar shape and are a favorite for those wanting to create a hedge. Our overall plan is to create a 12 foot tall hedge. Last fall, I began pleaching (interlacing) the trees. The trees are on five foot centers. While considered a columnar tree, if left on its own, these trees can ultimately grow to 50 feet tall and 20 foot diameter. However, it is relatively slow growing, reaching 25 feet tall and six feet diameter after 10 years.
They were planted in late November 2015 and were probably around 10 feet tall when planted. This Spring, they are up to about 15 feet and starting to look at little "leggy".
I've been reading several guides on the best time to prune these trees and how tall we really wanted them to be. The answer to the second question turned out to be pretty easy. They will be no taller than I can reach using an 8-foot step ladder (which turns out to be about 12 feet). As for when to prune, the answers ranged from early Spring to early summer to "whenever you have the urge to do so". I liked the later suggestion the best. All suggested that by pruning, you encourage additional branching.
After a coupe of hours, I called it good.
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