Hi, We live in New West and have a Cypress tree (I think) in our front yard. The tree is made up of two "trunks". See attached image. When we bought the house the tree had been trimmed sort of like a bonzai with each limb being a "ball". We have done this a few times but are finding that the tree really blocks light and the view of the house. As you can see it really over grows the front walk way (that run through the middle of the two trunks). So ... we are thinking about removing the bottom 5 feet of limbs and keeping the top of the tree ... we need to "top it" regularly to keep it out of some wires. Wondering if y'all have feedback about whether or not our plan makes sense ... will it hurt the tree? when is the best time to prune it for our climate? Cheers - Lorne
One of the juvenile foliage cultivars of Sawara Cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera), probably 'Boulevard'. It will not re-grow from cut branch ends, so any pruning you do will be permanent, and will likely expose the brown interior. Up to you whether you think that will be too unsightly to bear or not!
Looks like C. pisifera squarrosa. As you say it was made into a topiary in the past and is now losing the previously established styling. Shear in spring or early summer to maintain effect, including crown below wires. Stay within outer live shell to maintain coverage in portions where foliage desired. Consider carefully before sawing out whole limbs, as these will not be readily replaced by the tree (elevating crown by cutting away bottom of existing shape, so that it assumes a perched appearance not an enhancement).
