hi libraryjade : I am new to the forum. I pruned mine couple weeks ago and planted the branches to root new Jades. You can prune any of the branches that you think might be too heavy and cause it to break off. Stand back and look at it to see what limbs you might want to remove for astatic purposes. If you want to root the cuttings , leave them lay out for awhile to calous. If you don't want
them,I'm sure someone would be interested.You will get many more responses to your questions from members who are more experienced than I. A photo would be helpful.
Good Luck - LOU

Hi Librayaide: I waited for you to get a few more responses, from members. Thought someone would surely come to your aide.
A picture might trigger a response.
LOU

I will work on that - I am hoping that I can figure out how to post a photo...the instructions were a bit confusing. I read somewhere in this forum that you could snap off trailing stems - so I took the plunge and broke off some of the more obvious candidates for pruning. Will this prompt the jade to put more energy into the remaining branches?

I'm trying to put some space between the main branches so I can really see the best shape, but since it's the main feature in the atrium, I hesitate to do radical surgery. I figure if I clean it up in stages, the library patrons won't have to look at a stubby trunk while it's growing back out.

Hi LibraryJade (and Hi Lou!),

You can prune your jade at any time of the year. I had a similar problem with my jade and pruned it WAY back over the winter. There are many jade pruning advocates on here. It helps with tighter growth and a healthier looking plant. My plant had many drooping branches (I inherited it from a friend who overwatered it and did not give it enough sun), and I pruned it because it was too top heavy and the branches would have eventually broken off at random spots. I basically just cut off the branches that were hanging down (I learned that downward growth is not healthy and means there is not enough light), whether they were woody branches or just green stems. My plant is also huge (2 feet from the soil line to top of plant). I am so happy I pruned it (and I could have pruned much more). Here are some before pruning pics, some after pruning pics, and pics of it now (I pruned it in December I think). I also attached a link at the bottom to a great thread that helped me with my pruning. Also, it has some info on how to post pics.

BEFORE PRUNING:

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IMMEDIATELY AFTER PRUNING:

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CURRENT PIC FROM SIMILAR ANGLE:

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CURRENT PIC FROM DIFFERENT ANGLE:

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So, as you can see, it really filled out a lot. And it's still pretty cold here in NY, so I expect there to be A LOT more growth over the Spring and Summer. Good luck, and I hope to see some of your before and after pics.

Gabi

Here is a link that might be useful: I whacked my jade

Thanks! Actually, I'd read both your thread and the "whacked" thread several times, which is why I posted a question about going slower. Your pictures were very helpful - I have the same issues with dangling branches, and seeing how you handled yours was great.

The Library Jade is a monster; there are two main trunks about six inches in diameter, and two more that are about three inches thick. It's very spread out and starting to lean, so I really want to bring it back to an attractive shape. It seems really healthy, so location and soil are not a concern right now.

I wonder if I can post a cell phone picture from an email? I shall give that a try!

Glad that helped. Not sure about the cell phone pic...but it can't hurt to give it a try!

Wow...I didn't realize how MASSIVE your tree was! Now I see why you don't want to do a single pruning session. Just follow your instincts and cut back little by little, starting off with the heaviest branches that are causing it to lean. For the time being (or if it still leans a bit after pruning what you think is weighing it down), you can also try those bamboo stakes found at nurseries (the green ones so they match), and stick them in the soil to hold up the trunks. Your trunks may be too heavy, but if you can find a way to hold them up so they don't lean, I find that they usually stay that way after removing the sticks (if you have them there for long enough). Good luck, and I'm looking forward to seeing a pic of this huge tree!
Gabi

Hey libraryjade, I would kill to have my jade that big. I would try taking about 6 inches off the tops of each main trunk and cutting back some of the side shoots to keep it proportioned. The top will eventually send up branches. When you make the cuts, make them at an angle to where the cut part is facing away from the public. Don't make the big cuts straight across. This way, it is not as obvious to the public that you even cut the heighth of the plant. You can try rooting these, but they are awfully big. I would prune the main side branches so that no branch crosses each other. This is a bonsai technique, but it is very aesthetically pleasing IMO. The side shoots off these branches will fill out the plant by the end of summer. I would also get some sort of unobtrusive stake and put it behind the branches. Attach it with something that blends with the stalk color. If it is tan on the base of trunk, which I am sure that it is, you might use cut up nude color pantyhose. These will stretch and give and not dig into the trunk as it grows (and it will grow). In the higher up sections where it is still green, get some of the flexible tie tape that you use for staking tomato plants. Some are dark green, but I have seen them a lighter green. You could also use floral tape. Please post pictures, I am dying to see it.
Gabro14, your tree looks a lot healthier and happier. By the end of summer, it will really be a sight.
Hope this helps.

Tanyag,
Great info on pruning! Looking at my current pics, do you have any pruning suggestions for me?
Thanks,
Gabi

It's hard to tell. The limbs look different in each picture. In the second picture there is a limb that looks like it is growing down at about a 110 degree angle from the main trunk. I would prune this one back to about a half an inch from one leaf pair and pull off the top leaf. A new shoot should come from that point and get that branch growing up. There is nothing wrong with downward growth and it is actually appreciated in bonsai to a certain extent, but I don't think you are growing for bonsai purposes. In that same picture the main trunk and the one two to the right (if you are counting at the soil line) look like they take a sharp left turn. This is probablly from the severe floppiness from when you first got the plant. I would cut those at the point just below where they turn to get a good upward growth. IMO it would look better and make it easier on you in the future. As that limb continues its sideways growth, it will eventually pull on the plant as a whole. It would be awhile before this happened though. You could also wire it loosely and try to turn it to where it is growing upright (another bonsai thing), but you'd have to watch it very closely during the growing season because the wire will cut into the stem quickly. I think it looks a lot healthier after the prune than it did you first got it. Be sure and post more pics at the end of summer. I can't wait to see what it does.

Tanyag,
Thanks so much for getting back to me and taking the time to assess my tree. There's been something bothering me about it, and you've targeted the growth pattern that was kind of off. As for the downward growth, I see exactly what you're talking about in the picture...but I think it must be the angle of the camera or something because there are no downward branches on my tree. I checked that exact area on the tree and it's actually growing upward...weird! But the left growth that you mentioned has been bothering me (especially the main trunk) and your suggestion actually makes the tree look more even and appealing to the eye. I'm just too nervous to take that part off now. Maybe as it grows more to the left I will take it off...but it has put on such nice growth and I can't bear to do it now. If/when I do cut the "left" branches off, will the trunk continue to grow upward or will it just send out more little branches? I guess that's where I'm so unsure about pruning...I know it allows for healthier tighter growth of the leaves and branches, but it seems like the actual woody trunks don't grow after they are cut. Or maybe this just takes a while? Anyway, I will be sure to post more pics at the end of the summer. Thanks for your advice.
Gabi

Where you cut it, it will put out many shoots, but remember, you could prune away all but one shoot (the one going straight up from the trunk) and create a branch that becomes a new narrower part of the trunk. I think it is much like getting a tapered trunk on a bonsai. The downward growth that was showing in that picture could have changed due to increased lighting, thus turning it up towards the light. You could also "try" that with the left slanting trunks by turning those away from the light, but I think they are too big for that to work. I know it is hard for you, but I promise, they haven't even begun to put on growth. Mine here in Texas are growing and haven't hit summber dormancy because of excessive heat. But where you are, it probably won't get hot enough for them to go into that heat dormancy. Mine grow from March through June, and then slow or stop growing until September. Then they grow until our first freeze which isn't until December, if even then. I think yours will grow like crazy. Not only that, but good heafty pruning helps throw energy to the thickening of the trunks which will only make the overall plant more sturdy. I can't remember from your other post, are you able to put it outside or are you the one that has repairs going on for three months? Are you in an apartment? IS there a balcony?

Thanks for the explanation. Yes...good memory - I am the one one that has repairs going on for 3 months. I am in an apartment and have a nice big balcony, but I won't have access to it until probably July...I'm in a co-op and they are waterproofing the whole building. I was planning on putting it out in July, but I'm not sure if it's worth "training" it for the outdoors so late, and I'm also worried about putting it out at a time when the sun will be so strong (and that will be the very first time it will be outside). I may just have to wait until next year to put it outside. It's in a great sunny spot right now, so even if it stays inside it will get some good direct morning sun.

If you have the time, you could acclamate it slowly. You would only be able to do maybe 2 hours a day for a few days and up it an hour every third day. That would probably be enough. You could also erect some shade screen to protect it. When you got home from work/school at night, take the screen off and let it acclamate that way. It all depends on the direction your balcony faces and what sun it gets - morning, afternoon, evening. I also don't know your first frost date - October? It can handle down to 32. I know mine survived colder than that this winter. We had a few days in the 20's. Of course, I had them protected but I gave them NO water!

Thanks for the detailed acclimation info. You made it sound very doable. My balcony faces East (with a little bit of North facing sun coming from the end of the balcony..not that it's much of a help). So the jade would get morning sun. As it is now, it gets morning sun, because my apartment is wall to wall windows all facing East. There is a balcony above mine, so if I put the jade close to my building I can get a little shade from above, but I'm assuming it will still get tons of morning sun. Do you think I should still acclimate it slowly and/or use a shade screen being that my balcony faces East?

I leave for work in the mornings around 8:30, so if I had to move it in (in the beginning of the acclimation), it would have to be by that time or before then. Then I can bring it back outside when I get home from work. How long would it take until I could just leave it out there all day? I think our first frost date is around November 10th. So if I put the plant out in July, it would have a good 4 months before I'd have to take it back in...hopefully that'll be enough for me to get blooms if I take it in right before the first frost.

So I take it you leave yours out all year round? Do you get blooms? Any pics you can share?

With four months, I think it would be very happy. Morning sun would actually be perfect. I think you could just put it out there and let it get the morning sun. It would be shaded by the above balcony during the hottest part of the day and get none of the afternoon sun. When you can, put it out. Check it daily and just make sure it is not getting sunburned. It would get brown burn marks. The worst that would happen is you pull off that leaf. More will grow in its spot. Leave it there for two weeks and keep moving it further out until it is in full sun. The edges will get red in full sun. That is not the same thing as a burn. It is what they are supposed to do. I wish I could get a battery for my camera and post some pictures. It would probably take me ten years to figure out how to post pictures though. =0) Mine have never bloomed, but our temperatures are SO inconsistant. We'll have days in the 30's and 40's and a week later days in the 70's. I think to bloom, it needs consistant cool temps and no light at night - something like that. My other cacti bloom. I have a Kalanchoe getting ready to bloom and it's going to be awesome. I give it two or three more days. I'll try to get a battery for my camera.

Thanks so much Tanyag. I didn't know what the signs were for a sunburnt jade. I know about the reddish outline the leaves get and I look forward to that. I am hoping they finish the terrace work by July, but you never know with these co-ops. Everything gets delayed. I am going to put my jade outside as soon as I can use my balcony.
Congrats on your upcoming Kalanchoe bloom...one of my cacti recently bloomed and it was so pretty. Hoping to see some of your pics soon :-)
Thanks again for all your helpful advice.
Gabi

Pictures...finally! Sorry they are so HUGE - I'm still getting the hang of the picture thing.

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These were taken after I'd already cleaned up a bunch of the little drooping branches - I'd love some ideas on where to go next.

Hey libraryjade. I'm looking at your pics and drooling. I've printed up the pictures to stufy them. I have several visual ideas, but can't look at it right now. I will e-mail back tonight or in the morning.

I have attached the pictures which I uploaded into my snapfish account. The page should take you to where you can see all four. Each one has a caption that kind of explains what they are. Two are if you are doing it in stages. It was kind of hard to see where all the branches orgiginated. I would take off any branches that cross over the main view of the main trunks. Root these in free draining soil after letting them callous for about a week. I don't know if you've researched soil or not, but you'll need to have a freedraining mix. Take out all of the cuttings that are in the bottom and repot in small pots. Take them home and care of them until they are bigger. They detract from the beauty of the main plant and compete for energy since they are under the canopy of the main plant.

Now, on a personal note. I also included two pictures of how I would prune if I wasn't doing it in stages. You could buy another plant to replace this one while it is regrowing. You could take it home and put in full sun. This way it would grow a lot faster. I would do this because it would add ramification of branches and thus allow more bushiness. It would also give smaller leaf size at least for a little while. I would also take each main trunk and give it its own pot and line the alcove windows with them putting the tallest one in the middle and the others beside it, graduating out by size. Those are impressive trunks, but they are leaning for light way too badly. They need to be repotted and straightened so they grow upright. You might be able to find a piece of bamboo that you can place behind the trunk to keep it hidden. You could also use the stakes they use for tomatoes and peppers. You'll have to find something that you can cut to size so that it isn't seen. You could secure it with stretchy ties that you use for staking tomatoes or even with strips of pantyhose which would match the trunk better.

In one of the pictures there is a blue line showing where I would sever a big branch from the trunk. You could root that big branch and have another big trunk by placing it in well draining soil after about two weeks. It must be calloused over before you put it in soil. You wouldn't water until you notice new growth. Doing this, the way it looks to me, you would have five trunks, the biggest in the middle and two on either side. You can keep them all in the same pot,but you're going to have to repot them. Get one of those rolly platforms to place it/them on so that you can rotate it once a week. This should keep it from leaning so badly in search of light. Make sure your soil is free draining and if you are going to put pot in pot, make sure the pot fits in the bigger one correctly. If you don't take it out to water, you could fill in the sides with sand and this will keep it from tipping over even if the branches start to lean again. The only thing that I don't like about the pot in pot thing is that once every three months or so, you really need to take it outside and really run water through the pot to take out any salts/minerals that are building up in the soil from your tap water/fertilizing. If you had it on a rolly platform, it would be easy enough to just roll it out once a month and really give it a good watering so that water runs through it and keeps the salt/mineral build up thing from happening in the first place. They have big pots that have holes already in the bottom for drainage, but then again, I don't know if you would have to pay for this out of pocket of if the library has a budget for such stuff.

I know it is a lot, but these are just suggestions. You have to do what will work for you and what you can afford to do. Oh, if money were no object.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pictures of Pruning Ideas

Tanyag, thanks so much for your suggestions!! I will definitely get some help hauling it outside to flush out the soil in the pot, and will work with your recommendations to trim it into a more balanced and attractive shape. I think it could be very cool and unusual in a bonai kind of way, using a humungous jade to create the kind of outline you usually see in tiny evergreens. The challenge will be to encourage the plant to fill out toward the center so it balances itself (both visually and physically). Now that I know how to post pictures, I will keep you posted with my progress. Thanks again!

Katie