Hi! We purchased a house last year with a large magnolia tree in front. It's really close to the house, which has me a little concerned but today we noticed one of the branches is cracked. These first pictures were taken at the beginning of April: Since then the blooms have gone, the leaves have filled in and the rain has really weighed it down, causing the branch to crack the limb where it joins. Could anyone please give us an idea where this should be cut off? Looking at the last picture...is it possible to just cut off the branch that has caused the crack? Do we have to cut off the whole limb and lose the other branch that is growing off to the right? Any advise would be greatly appreciated! We love the tree and would like to be able to keep it. Thank you!
As it is already quite split you are going to have to prune it off at the next fork back into the tree from where the splitting is. Work your way in from the end of the branch, in sections, taking enough weight off so that by the time you get to the fork and the final cut the piece removed will be small enough that it does not tear away a strip of bark or wood that extend farther back into the branch, beyond the fork.
Well...this might change things... The storm just blew in and within minutes it was on the ground. Do we still have to cut off the whole limb? Don't laugh but we're wondering if there any way to root the piece that has been broken off.
