Pull hawthorn as a ball tree

Why Kugelbaum?

There are good reasons why the ball tree has become so established in park and garden culture. Small to medium-high shrubs or Trees can be kept to a manageable size and still exude a cozy tree character. They still look extremely well-groomed. Especially in places where there is little space - for example at the edge of a road or in the front yard - a spherical tree can fully demonstrate its advantages.

What makes the hawthorn the ideal ball tree candidate

The prerequisites that a wood must bring with it for a spherical tree culture are as follows:

• Habit of the category large shrub to small tree
• Moderate increase in height
• Good cut tolerance

The hawthorn fulfills all of these conditions perfectly. It is extremely pruning and is very easy to grow due to its change-tolerant growth character High trunk and educate them to be a spherical crown.

If you let it grow naturally, it develops a rather sparse, spreading shrub habit. By regularly cutting off the lower side shoots in the first few years, however, it willingly grows into a dainty small tree.

Cut the crown into a spherical shape

To get a spherical crown, you don't really need a lot of specialist knowledge. As long as you have a good eye for even curves, you can shape the branches of the crown by eye. The densely branched branches ensure a dense ball character, the regular, tapering cut back prevents unattractive thinning at the same time.

You make the topiary every year in early spring or on a frost-free late winter day. To do this, always shorten the central shoot by about 1/3. Select 3-4 main shoots in the wide crown branches as early as possible, which to a certain extent form the framework of the sphere. You can always use these as a guide when shortening. As soon as the main shoots are shortened to the desired length, you can adapt the remaining, smaller branches to them.