Sweetbay (?) magnolia in my back yard. It has significant bark damage, limb damage, and is covered in woodpecker holes on all major limbs. So far I haven’t touched it, because I was told magnolias don’t do well with heavy pruning, but I’m wondering if I should at least prune the suckers off.
And for reference, I’ve no idea how the damage occurred to the bark – it was like that before we moved in.
arboroverlander
A soil care plan and a slight prune. If it is a heavy foot traffic area, consider soil de- compaction via air spade or a proper mulch layer.
Fearless_Spite_1048
Carefully unbury the “buttress roots” or “root collar/root flare.” Use wood chips as mulch under the canopy.
For pruning you could consider making strategic tip reduction cuts to reduce weight on any long heavy areas that have bad unions or attachments, but with the wounding at the base you’ll likely want to keep as much foliage as possible for maximum energy production. Worth consulting with a certified arborist in person.
3 Comments
Sweetbay (?) magnolia in my back yard. It has significant bark damage, limb damage, and is covered in woodpecker holes on all major limbs. So far I haven’t touched it, because I was told magnolias don’t do well with heavy pruning, but I’m wondering if I should at least prune the suckers off.
And for reference, I’ve no idea how the damage occurred to the bark – it was like that before we moved in.
A soil care plan and a slight prune. If it is a heavy foot traffic area, consider soil de- compaction via air spade or a proper mulch layer.
Carefully unbury the “buttress roots” or “root collar/root flare.” Use wood chips as mulch under the canopy.
For pruning you could consider making strategic tip reduction cuts to reduce weight on any long heavy areas that have bad unions or attachments, but with the wounding at the base you’ll likely want to keep as much foliage as possible for maximum energy production. Worth consulting with a certified arborist in person.
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