Pruning the Smoke Bushes in My Allée
In order to keep my Bedford, New York farm and all its gardens, allées, and groves as beautiful as possible, I pay lots of attention to the maintenance and care of all my trees and shrubs.
In 2019, I decided to plant an allée along the carriage road through the lower hayfields. I planted a selection of London plane trees and about 100 royal purple smoke bushes, Cotinus coggygria. Over the years these trees have thrived with the smoke bushes growing about 24 inches each year. This week they were pruned and groomed and they look excellent.
Enjoy these photos.
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- I planted this allée in the fall of 2019. I thought it was a perfect stretch of landscape for a long allée of London planes and smoke bushes. Here it is that first year.
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- I wanted the allée to extend the entire portion of the road that cuts through the lower hayfields. By the summer of 2021, it looked like this. These smoke bushes can grow up to 15-feet tall and 10-feet wide. I love its upright, multi-stemmed habit. I grow many smoke bushes at the farm.
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- Here is the allée in June 2022 – the smoke bushes are wider and more full. Cotinus or smoke bush, is a genus of seven species of flowering plants in the family Anacardiaceae, closely related to the sumacs. It has an upright habit when young and spreads wider with age.
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- This photos was taken just last May. Under optimal conditions, smoke bushes can add about 13 to 24 inches to its height each year. The colors of the smoke bushes and the London planes behind them look striking together.
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- And this is the allée earlier this week before all the Cotinus was pruned. Look at all the growth.
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- Pasang Sherpa is my resident tree pruner. He does a wonderful job overseeing the maintenance of all the trees here at my farm. I like as much of the pruning and grooming to be done by hand, so Pasang trims every branch with his pruners – one by one.
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- These royal purple smoke bushes, Cotinus coggygria, have stunning dark red-purple foliage that turns scarlet red in fall.
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- The undersides are bright green. The leaves of smoke bushes are waxy purple and are one and a half to three inches long, and ovate in shape.
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- The name “smoke bush” comes from the billowy hairs attached to the flower clusters which remain in place through the summer, turning a smoky pink to purplish-pink as the weeks progress.
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- Notice the cut branch in the center. All the branches surrounding it are new – grown over the last 12 months. When removing amounts of wood, cut back to just before a growth node to prevent dead ends.
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- Look at the new growth. Cutting it back regularly can help the plant retain its most colorful foliage.
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- It also ensures the old stems produce plenty of flowers the following year.
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- Here, one can see what Pasang is cutting and what he has left to cut. He always uses a sharp and clean tool to prevent spreading disease.
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- Pasang stops intermittently to assess his work and to make sure the smoke bushes are level with each other.
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- And look at the ground – so many cut branches. As they are cut, Pasang places the branches at the edge of the carriage road, so they are easier to pick up later.
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- Lower to the ground at the base of the trees and shrubs are pink hydrangeas. I just planted these earlier this season.
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- The blooms on the compact Summer Crush® hydrangea are intense, deep raspberry pink.
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- And here is the allée now with all the smoke bushes pruned beautifully. After every pruning, the shrubs grow bushier with larger leaves. Wait until you see it next year!
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