Does anyone know where I can go to get information on how to prune Chinese Pistache 'Keith Davey'? I am a volunteer on the landscaping team for our community. Last fall we planted 30 Chinese Pistache 'Keith Davey’ (seedless male clones). Now, after the first growing season, we are looking for some pruning guidance on how best to train these trees. We had no luck finding someone in our area (Paso Robles, CA) that has experience with these type of trees. Multiple internet searches came up blank on pruning. However, from my searches, it seems these trees have been planted in Davis, Modesto and Fresno, CA. Any help would be most appreciated! -- Mike
If you have been looking for information about pruning the cultivar and ignoring descriptions of pruning the species that is your problem. You should take the same approach as if they were unselected seedlings. Pruning books provide this information. For example: "Train as a central-leader standard with a short, clear trunk, pruning in winter. A lost leader is difficult to replace, and the resultant shrublike habit is best accepted. Established trees need little pruning and do not respond well to hard pruning. Drying winds may cause dieback that in turn results in a proliferation of growth, which should be thinned" --Brickell/Joyce, PRUNING & TRAINING (1996, DK Publishing, New York)
