Growing Tree Broken in Half

Forums › Home Workshop DIY › Growing Tree Broken in Half - Remove Totally?

BLazeD

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#280624 30-Dec-2020 06:56

I think one of the kids broke the trunk/main stalk of the attached STILL GROWING tree in half. Does the entire tree need to be removed and replaced now? From what I read that whole "area" won't grow now, it being the main "trunk", the tree is now a goner?

Thanks

pih

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#2628018 30-Dec-2020 07:36

I'm just an amateur gardener but I'm pretty sure it's not completely ruined, trees are pretty resilient however it will take some time to recover and may not grow how you need it to. It looks like a hedging tree, so if you're looking for height from it then you may be disappointed. Ultimately it will keep sprouting upwards, but in the meantime while it recovers you may find that it becomes wider and bushier than its siblings.

To clean it up a bit, you should probably trim the break with a pair of secateurs. Angle the cut slightly to allow water to run off rather than pooling as it will now. You may also want to put a dab of paint on the cut to reduce the risk of borer making their way in.

If you're really concerned about its appearance you may be able to find one a similar size at a nursery that you could replace it with.

BLazeD

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#2628021 30-Dec-2020 07:37

Thanks! Yes it is a tree that will eventually form part of a hedge. If anyone also knows the name of it that would be good in case I need to replace it. Height will be important :)

tdgeek

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#2628023 30-Dec-2020 08:00

Looks like a Magnolia. Can you take a further back pic?

sscribenz

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#2628033 30-Dec-2020 08:51

It will still grow, it'll just branch out from bellow the damage. With some hedges / plants it's adventagous to clip new growth tips to encourage bushy dense growth.
It depends on whether you mind there being a fork in the tree at that height.

Edit: Looks like a Magnolia Grandiflora, the most common type is Little Gem but there are a few slightly different varieties.

Eva888

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#2628035 30-Dec-2020 08:59

Possibly a camellia which are often used for hedges. I would just let it be. If the top part has been cut off, it will encourage side shoots to form which is why hedges are trimmed on top so they become thicker on the sides and join up to the next bush to form the hedge. It will be fine eventually. Trees are resilient. I cut a tall cabbage tree down to soil level. Three months later it’s shooting up again.

afe66

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#2628044 30-Dec-2020 09:39

I think we have magnolias, pretty but sticky buds and flower parts mean im forever bringing bits into the house because they stick to shoes...

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Eva888

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#2628062 30-Dec-2020 11:30

afe66: I think we have magnolias, pretty but sticky buds and flower parts mean im forever bringing bits into the house because they stick to shoes...

Often sticky leaves etc means they have an infestation of aphids which poo sticky stuff on the plant and all around the ground. Suggest you try spraying with a neem oil especially undersides of leaves. Also you can make up a mix of water, few drops of dishwash liquid and a teaspoonful of oil and spray a few times. The oil and dishwash smother their bodies and they die. Horrid things to get rid of once you have them.

tehgerbil

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#2628075 30-Dec-2020 12:15

pih is 100% correct and I really suggest you heed their advice about cleaning up the wound.

That's going to get rotten very quickly and might take the tree with it. Clean up that end ASAP.

neb

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#2628249 30-Dec-2020 23:08

BLazeD:
Thanks! Yes it is a tree that will eventually form part of a hedge. If anyone also knows the name of it that would be good in case I need to replace it. Height will be important :)

Looks like a magnolia, which means that unless it's a dwarf variety you're going to end up with a hedge that starts 5m off the ground. Even the dwarf varieties don't work well as hedges, they're spreading and open so will be more of a light screen than any kind of hedge.

Also, some trees are remarkably resilient, Ive got an Australian frangipani that has twice been snapped off completely, and both times it put out new leaves and kept growing. So it will probably still be OK, just not much good as a hedge.

Edited to add: As someone else has pointed out, it's a grandiflora from looking back at the second photo. That thing will dwarf the house in about ten years time, definitely not a hedge plant. Try a pittosporum or camellia or similar for a nice thick hedge.

tdgeek

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#2628287 31-Dec-2020 07:37

neb:
BLazeD:

Thanks! Yes it is a tree that will eventually form part of a hedge. If anyone also knows the name of it that would be good in case I need to replace it. Height will be important :)

Looks like a magnolia, which means that unless it's a dwarf variety you're going to end up with a hedge that starts 5m off the ground. Even the dwarf varieties don't work well as hedges, they're spreading and open so will be more of a light screen than any kind of hedge. Also, some trees are remarkably resilient, Ive got an Australian frangipani that has twice been snapped off completely, and both times it put out new leaves and kept growing. So it will probably still be OK, just not much good as a hedge. Edited to add: As someone else has pointed out, it's a grandiflora from looking back at the second photo. That thing will dwarf the house in about ten years time, definitely not a hedge plant. Try a pittosporum or camellia or similar for a nice thick hedge.

Agree. We have two, about 4m tall, I cant see how they could be a hedge as the branches spread out, big leaves, and thick branches at the end of a branch.

BLazeD

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#2628918 1-Jan-2021 15:24

Thanks everyone, very helpful as well as informative posts! I have cleaned up the wound as advised.

I also added two images below that give a better view of what the plant is exactly. The tallest ones in the image are around 2.2M I would say.

They were planted by the previous house owners. I guess we don't really need a hedge as such, but this is what I would ideally want from the plant:

1. Nice to look at.

2. Some additional privacy if neighbours build higher

3. NON light blocking to the extent possible (conflict with #2 I guess, but maybe if the leaves are spread out as you say this may be possible?)

4. Thick leaves that fall directly down (ie won't blow into a nearby pool if we get one).

Thoughts? Cheers!

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neb

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#2628946 1-Jan-2021 17:13

Those are definitely magnolias and from the foliage density they're probably not the dwarf variety. One thing you'll certainly get is privacy even of the neighbours build a multi-story building:

Whoever decided to plant a wall of those a few metres apart as a "hedge" would probably also get a Great Dane puppy because it's nice to have a cute tiny puppy around the house. And a couple of little Clydesdale ponies for the kids to play with.

BLazeD

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#2628950 1-Jan-2021 17:17

Jeepers! We will have to keep on top of them height wise then!

geoffwnz

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#2629141 2-Jan-2021 07:56

If the Magnolia at my parents place in Taupo is anything to go by, they are very resilient. I prune it annually quite hard to keep it away from the house guttering, above head height over the path and to thin out the canopy somewhat. And then again the next year, the same pruning is required. It just sprouts new shoots behind the cuts and away it goes again.

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tdgeek

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#2629157 2-Jan-2021 09:23

BLazeD:

Thanks everyone, very helpful as well as informative posts! I have cleaned up the wound as advised.

I also added two images below that give a better view of what the plant is exactly. The tallest ones in the image are around 2.2M I would say.

They were planted by the previous house owners. I guess we don't really need a hedge as such, but this is what I would ideally want from the plant:

1. Nice to look at.

2. Some additional privacy if neighbours build higher

3. NON light blocking to the extent possible (conflict with #2 I guess, but maybe if the leaves are spread out as you say this may be possible?)

4. Thick leaves that fall directly down (ie won't blow into a nearby pool if we get one).

Thoughts? Cheers!

Looks good. Pruning wise, young trees in Spring, more mature trees in Summer. Choose a day where its dry so the wound can seal. Id recommend pruning the fence side so the rear branches dont get untidy as they grow against the fence as no room to spread. If you want good flowering, and overall healthiness, get a few bags of peat, that will keep the soil acidic which is what they want. Our two which are 4m high, one had the odd flower, the other doesn't, but peat applied in Winter has them both flowering regularly