Red oak size and trimming

Thanks to all who answered a previous question regarding Kousa dogwoods and sun. It was very helpful.

A related question: I have a young red oak in my front lawn (facing south), which I've been told could grow eventually to over 60 ft by 50 ft. (Of course, growing at about 1 1/2 ft per year, that means abut 40 years from now.) The problem is, I have a ranch home on a relatively small lot, and at that size, the tree will totally dominate the yard as well as place everything in shade. I like having some sun hit the house, both for lighting purposes and for my garden at the front of the house. My question is: is it possible/advisable to periodically trim back the oak to keep its size more manageable? Or would this harm the tree, or really not help reduce the size of the tree in the long run?

An alternative is to transplant the oak to a place where this won't be an issue.

Thanks for the input. I'm new to this, and find I am learning an awful lot reading this newsgroup.

Reply to
Stuart E. Weiner
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A Red Oak wants to be the size it wants to be... pruning can slow the process but never stop it (without immense intervention which wouldn't be particularly healthy for the tree). 60' by 60' is typical at maturity. I would disagree with others' assessment that this is a slow growing tree. In optimum conditions 2' per year is not unusual. The technical term for this oak is a BHT, or Big Honkin' Tree!

Dave

Reply to
David J Bockman

Plant/cultivate trees and whatnot (a wisteria is a 'whatnot' :-) with an eye to what the full-grown critter may become. Hate to keep mentioning Isabel, but one wonders what an 80' pine tree is doing in a suburban back yard where lots are 50'x100' (I didn't plant it, but I didn't cut it down when I moved here, either.) Rather than trying to prune, trim, "top" (ugh) various plant life (which makes many trees unhappy and less stable), plant with a view to what you eventually want. Some idiot "landscapers" put a row of photinas next to my house as "bushes." Their normal growth results, in this area, in robust

20-30' trees, and they must constantly be pruned.

Bite the bullet. Remove the oak (unless you plan to move within the next 5 yrs and pass the problem along to the next homeowner), and replace with something more suitable.

Reply to
Frogleg

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