Leaf Reduction

[Bebbas]

How do I do it?

Calling all our experienced growers. What are your techniques and tips to reduce leaf size?

[kcpoole]

Generally by defoliating the tree either partially or fully depending on species.

When you take the leaves off, they will usually be replaced with smaller ones ( Liquidambar, Ficus,)
with Maples, tip pruning the new shoots will prevent the remaining leaves from increasing in size,

No one rule for all but a compbination of the above usually works for me.

Ken

[Pup]

How do I do it?

Calling all our experienced growers. What are your techniques and tips to reduce leaf size?

On what species??

[Grant Bowie]

Lots of fertilizer(counter-intuitive) + lots of water + lots of sun =lots of growing; add lots of trimming and more trimming = more branches and branchlets = lots of ramification = smaller leaves eventually. Not a short cut; just persistence.

Grant

[Bebbas]

thanks kc and Grant.Defoliate All leaves? Or just the big ones?
I am talking about new growth here because I trunk chopped it

Pup, it is a Eucalypt.

Bebbas

[shibui]

Well said Grant

Smaller leaves is a factor of many shoots. A tree of a given size needs a given area of leaf to stay healthy. It can be a single shoot with a single large leaf or it can be 20 shoots with 20 leaves all 1/20th the size.
Defoliating deciduous trees (and figs) forces new shoots where there was a single leaf. The new shoots grow several leaves which are usually smaller than the ones that were removed. Regular pruning and pinching will produce the same results as Grant suggests and improves ramification quicker as well. Neither method will give instant results - either way it takes time.

Although I have not mastered eucs yet I feel that regular pinching and pruning will be the best way. Grant can probably give some details on how the Eucs that have been in the collection were managed.

[Tony Bebb]

Grant and Shibui have nailed it well.

Simple fact is there is one rule for all, it is just applied a little differently across the species. If you remove the tip you develop back budding which turns leaves in to branches. Each time you remove a new shoot it stops the leaf/needle size at what is there. It then produces new shoots from the base of the leaf/needle that will be a branch and will have smaller leaves/needles. If you remove those new shoots when the leaves/needles are small they will stay small. Correct pruning removes the need for constant defoliation that will weaken a tree.

Small leaves is the end of the scale. First grow the tree well and develop all the branching you need. Then worry about developing the small leaves. As stated, many shoots produces smaller leaves. It is then easier to keep them small.

Happy growing. Then pruning. Then growing. Then pruning. Then growing. Then pruning. Then growing. Then.........

Most of all. Keep them growing

Tony

[Bebbas]

wow thanks everyone. Really informative. So when you remove the tip Tony, it doesnt just split off into 2 new branches with the same size leaves?

[Grant Bowie]

We currently have 3 Eucs in the collection;

Angophora costata, Euc nicholii and Euc vernicosa.

They are so different from each other in their habits it is amazing, but the basics I outlined above hold. As they are on display, old and 2 out of 3 are on loan we would not risk an old Euc Bonsai with a defoliation.

We do remove the old leaves on the Angophora costata as they start to age but not the other 2.

Grant

[Tony Bebb]

wow thanks everyone. Really informative. So when you remove the tip Tony, it doesnt just split off into 2 new branches with the same size leaves?

When you remove the tip a tree will produce shoots from the base of the end 2 or 3 leaves/needles at least. Each leaf/needle(set) can produce a shoot from its base that will be a new branch with the first 3 - 5 leaves/needles at least being smaller than the original leaf/needle. When you remove or seasonally stop the new shoots of this smaller growth, it will stay small.

Consistent pruning of new shoots means we do not have to defoliate well ramified trees, but sometimes we like to anyway

[Bebbas]

So does this mean that when you have new growth, the earlier you take the centre out the better? Like when the shoot is really new and not developed rather than letting it grow and getting bigger?

[Kevin Nel]

Hi everyone

The easiest way to reduce leaves on acacias and figs for example is by placing the trees in as much sun as possible and combining this with less water during the active growing stages so that the growth is retarded. Especially with acacias that have bigger compound leaves this technique works well.

Regular pruning will have more or less the same effetc.

One comment especially for beginners:

If you are still developing a tree, do not worry about reduced leaf size as your aim is as much growth in as short a time as possible so that the tree can advance quickly.

[kcpoole]

So does this mean that when you have new growth, the earlier you take the centre out the better? Like when the shoot is really new and not developed rather than letting it grow and getting bigger?

Yes that is correct, by pinching the tip after the first or second set of leaves develop, you will force the tree to stop increasing the size of the leaves and develop new smaller ones as well

See the new wiki page on leaf reduction here which is a compilation of all the ides and knowledge here
https://www.ausbonsai.com.au/wiki/index. ... _reduction

Ken