Sunday, June 24, 2012

ROAD KILL - not what you are thinking

I think fondly of the trees I have taken from the side of the road as "road kill", as in 'if I don't take them they will one day be killed for growing too close to the road'.  The same goes for under hydro wires, where they are all just buying time, blissfully unaware.

The other day I grabbed four pine and a spruce.  One of the pine was already damaged, having its leader somehow removed.  I've planted it in the background although a little research shows its prospects are not strong.  Look closely and you can see the damage in the "before" photo below.
I've committed to this tree, and I'm going to try something different and see with a little help if I can't get it to grow another leader by splinting a branch up and cutting off the others at that level. (thanks eHow
It will be a fascinating experiment.


Here is one of the places between us and our neighbours where I've added 4 evergreens and will be adding in about 4 more today.  I'm going to over-plant since I'll be happy if they grow relatively slowly, after all, we don't want them to reach maturity with bare branches towards the bottom, we want them to provide dense cover so we see less of our neighbour's cottage.

P.S.  I know in my last post I said I had other priorities now that we are moving and time at the cottage is limited, but I have revised my list to include adding in more trees between us and our neighbours on both sides - now that is a long term project!

2 comments:

  1. I have 'made' another leader on a tree by that ezact same method, it will work. Privacy is always a priority between neighbours, and I am sure it will be appreciated in years to come.

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    Replies
    1. Deborah, thanks for the encouragement. Glad to know you have had success.

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