Specific pruning advice really needs pix. What percent of the green was pruned off?

tj

It will only allow me to submit the photos that way. Hopefully enough details can be seen

can you try to turn the pix ??

if it were mine.. i would PROPERLY cut them off at the branch collar at the trunk .. and move on with life ..

in fact.. this would have never happened with mine.. because i would have pruned it up that high.. so i could walk under the tree without poking my eyes out ..

no otherwise healthy tree or plant died from pruning .. period ... in fact.. you could cut it flush to the ground.. and it wont die.. it will regrow .... but dont do that ..

never leave stubs when pruning ..

and lastly.. bar this person from ever returning to your garden ... or if its dad.. lol.. at lest bar him from walking around with a saw and pruners ... lol

this is really no big deal.. just prune off the very long stubs ... do NOT try to regrow them ...

ken

Oh my. The pruner had NO IDEA what they were doing. Take their tools away.

Those stumps must be cut back to about 1” or 2” from the trunk.

So do we think the branches that were mangled will or can grow back? I really liked the weeping look. And I’m just curious if Ican get that back. I do not want it pruned up high

'Those stumps must be cut back to about 1” or 2” from the trunk.'

No! Proper pruning requires cutting branches off up to the branch collar. This allows the wound to close up (encapsulate) and heal properly. Do not leave 'Stubs'.

(safe site)

https://i0.wp.com/deepgreenpermaculture.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/pruning-tree-branches-collar.png?ssl=1

What a nice catalpa -- I'm sorry someone trimmed it without your direct supervision. But it's not horrible.

If you did nothing, new shoots would sprout from the end/near the end of the cut limbs. They won't be in proportion to the heavier limb, and they might be winter-killed. I'd look at each limb individually, assess whether to prune it back to the main trunk or is there a chance to make it into a decent header cut. (types of pruning cuts)

I think floral is right, that over time the lowest remaining limbs will tend to hang lower, so you'll get the weeping effect back in a few seasons. Good luck!

@User Thank you! That is very helpful! I was not familiar with that pruning technique, I will research how to do that.

I am clearly new to this, but how will I know which ones can be saved and which ones need to be pruned? Do you have any tips?

Personally, I’d cut them all off. The big one has to go and the others might or might not eventually look ok. But for a few years you’d have a bunch of sprouts sticking out of the truncated stumpy chopped off limbs. Better to get rid of them all imo.

@floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK If I do that, do you think I would get that weeping look back? It doesn’t sound like it.

I would agree with removal of those cut branches.

The reason they were, weeping or hanging, is because they were reaching for sunlight from under the branches above them, causing them to elongate further and faster than what the branch could support.

Now that they're cut, any new growth that sprouts out, from who knows what part of the old branch and in what direction, will be growing in the shade, so they will grow less vigorously than before and will never grow out from the end, trying to compete with the branches above. That part is over.

Best to properly remove them and give the tree a chance to resume normal growth on the branches that are left and then the lower branches that haven't been cut will now use the energy of the tree to compete with the higher branches and may then begin to weep after some time has passed, maybe years.

There really aren't any other good choices about this to pick from.

With time the layer of remaining lowest leafed branches will grow downward a bit, as was stated earlier. Catalpa "stubs" might sprout, but if shaded that much would eventually die-off anyway, so cut them off flush.

See that longest, lowest cut off branch? And the three little branches growing straight up from it? If you cut that branch close to one of those upward sprouts, the upward sprout will grow larger and thicker. Eventually it will send off branches of its own, some of which are likely to grow downward a bit. Good -- but -- the kicker is, will the original branch be strong enough to support the new upward growth as it all matures over the years. Think of holding a heavy weight straight out at arm's length, versus bending your arm and holding it close to your body. The heavier the weight (of the growing branches), and the further from the (tree's) trunk, the more likely a break (of the limb from the trunk) becomes.

For that longest, lowest limb, I'd take it back to the "elbow", and let an upward sprout develop from that point.* Look at other catalpas in your area, many of them will have a similar "cut-then-up" branch in their structure. But it has to be close enough to the trunk to be strong enough.

For the other cuts that were closer to the trunk, I'd go ahead and trim them properly to the collar with the trunk -- even if they could develop an upward branch, that new branch would be too close to the trunk to be pleasing.

*WHEN to make that cut ... I'd wait until late November or early December. That's because your cut is likely to trigger immediate growth of new shoots, and young catalpa growth (new twigs) are easily killed by freezing temperatures. By pruning in November, the tree shouldn't push out new growth until temperatures warm up in spring. At that time, choose the strongest looking shoot, rub off any extra shoots, and keep an eye on it as it develops.

Good luck! Catalpas are beautiful trees, and with trees you rarely need to be hasty. Give them time to develop.

Will the branches grow back?

Catalpas are a favorite for pollarding because they are one of those kinds that can have all the branches cut back to the trunk year after year and still resprout well. And most of your tree is still intact. So it is certainly to be expected that it will be able to sprout from the small number of recently cut branches. But as has been discussed here it won't necessarily be desirable to have what will now be sprouting stumps poking out from the trunk, beneath the main canopy.

Maybe I should clarify my comment “branches will not and cannot grow back.’ I meant that the original branch will not regrow. But new shoots will eventually grow from the stump. However, they will be much thinner than the original branch and, imo, will look ugly.

@User

Thank you! The information you have provided has made me feel brtter about the ambush my tree endured! I appreciate you taking the time to educate me on how to best remedy this.

I will also follow that advice and hope for the best! That was exactly the type of information I was looking for but couldn’t find with a google search.

Beware of upward growing shoots off a horizontal branch. This can create a grid of branches that will trap any strong winds, and the pressure can take down the tree. We need to trim to create trees with low

”windage”.

Aborist just over pruned my 30 year catalpa and the whimsy is gone. said they were only removing 20%.… but most of the whimisical branches are completely gone. I found your post and know your devistation. Diving up to my home yesterday and seeing what had been done was excrusiating. I dont want to make that drive again today. litterally wept…. am beyond upset... physically sick. I hope yours recovered. The guy said it will grow back in 4-5 years. 1) thats a long time to wait. 2) it will never look as it did. how does one hold an aborist accountable for something like this?

" how does one hold an aborist accountable for something like this? "

You don't. It is your obligation to hire a properly skilled/experienced arborist, preferably one that is ISA certified, explain exactly the work you want to have done and if you are smart, be on hand to oversee they are following your wishes and to raise the alarm if they are not.

If you read the previous comments, you will see that catalpas can take a severe pruning and still come back, although it may take some time to recover.

The arborist I refer to is ISA-certified. Furthermore, we did meet with them. They came to our property last week to evaluate the tree and discuss exactly what would be done. My husband and I were both there for that conversation with the ISA-certified arborist. My husband also met with the arborist and crew upon their arrival and start of work on Monday. We trusted that what was discussed would be carried out. Having to work doesn’t make us ‘not smart’. (I don't stand next to my mechanic to oversee their work... I trusted the certified arborist to do what we clearly discussed). Additionally, If you read my comment, I said 4-5 years is a long time to wait for the tree to recover…. So I read the comments and understand my tree can come back (albeit different). I commented hoping the original author would respond and give a positive update on their tree. Your post was not helpful. In fact, your post is unnecessarily insulting. Here I thought I was having a bad day… @gardengal48 I hope things get better for you so you don’t feel the need to be mean to random people online.

HU, I sympathize with your situation, and seems like you did due diligence w/the "arborist", but that you are a victim, IMO, of a general decline in professionalism. But it's not new, in the early 1960s, two huge Norway maples that shaded our back yard were WAY over-trimmed by "arborists", and both died over the next couple years. We were angry and heart-broken. Fortunately, I think your catalpa is much more capable of recovering than our much older Norways.