Care guides / Caring for pleached trees.

If your trees have been newly pleached this season then plant and leave them over the summer, to give them time to settle in and start growing.

If they are in a windy or very exposed area then we would suggest some sort of staking system to give them support.

Watering: Ensure the trees receive sufficient water for the first season and in long dry periods thereafter.

A good quality fertiliser can also assist the development of the trees, but only feed during the growing season.

Clipping: Once established, it is advisable to trim the branches of the trees in mid to late May and then again in late August, just before the buds develop for the following year’s growth.

The idea of the pleached tree is to develop a canopy or screen and so we recommend that you trim and tie the branches onto the framework to achieve this. It is best to use a tree tying material, which will stretch with the growth of the branch.

Eventually, the tree will form a total block and when you get to this stage you can then just trim with a hedge cutter.

Once the trees are very established you should be able to remove the framework, but you may need to use wire to support some of the finer branches.