Question

734  

735   Hi Jim,

I am not sure if this is your area or not, but I really appreciated the answers to questions I asked about trees in the past.

My front yard has a Snow Fountain Weeping Cherry tree I planted about 6 years ago. I purchased this when I knew little about the tree but just loved the pics of the white flowers I'd see in photos.

I bought this at a plant auction and in hindsight I realize that it did not have a good form to the branch structure. The weeping branches now are weeping along the ground out into the lawn and the flower bed behind the tree. This makes mowing and mulching the flower bed a problem.

Does this tree have to be let go in its present wild form or could I trim the three to make the branch structure and an umbrella look?

Some of the branches grow straight out instead of having that weeping curve. What do I do about that?

Will trimming the branches make more suckers and branching  compound the problem?

I am including a photo from late winter so you can see the branching structure without leaves blocking the view.

Thanks for your thoughts.

Mike

Answer
This tree is a weeping specie meaning the branches form the "fountain look". You can trim the branches up from the ground about two feet and not harm the tree. The trimmed branches will continue to grow and as they do you will need to trim again. Cutting the tree as an umbrella can damage the foliage. The branches that are straighter should be left alone they will as they grow weep. I would think about mulches under the tree and then mowing would not be a problem. Any suckers on the main trunk can be cut off. I hope this answerers your questions.