I almost wish I had never planted the tree!

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Drake Elms require VERY little pruning. Young trees should not be pruned other than to establish a strong main trunk.

We have two that we planted 7 years ago. This year we pruned them really for the first time; removed low limbs.

Instead, trim the upper branches back to substantial lateral branches, those at least one-third the diameter of the branches you are removing.

Ulmus parvifolia‘Drake’ -- ‘Drake’ Chinese Elm Page 3 Pruning requirement: requires pruning to develop Figure 3. Foliage of ‘Drake’ Chinese Elm. strong structure Breakage: resistant Current year twig color: brown; gray Current year twig thickness: thin Culture Light requirement: tree grows in part shade/part sun; tree grows in full sun.

Jan 05, The drake elm (also called Chinese elm or lacebark elm) is a quick-growing elm tree that naturally develops a dense, rounded, umbrella shaped canopy. For more drake elm tree information and details on caring for drake elm trees, read stumpcutting.bar Apr 24, Florida. Apr 21, #1. We have a beautiful drake elm that is in need of pruning. Unfortunately it was planted when the house was first built and survived a hurricane as a young tree but was left listing to one side.

When we bought the house it was staked with rope to link cut tree path aggregate to either straighten it or prevent it from leaning more.

Buy from nurseries who understand how to train and prune this tree for street and parking lot use, otherwise you may be trimming and pruning low drooping branches on a regular basis.

Trees which have a trunk less than about two inches in diameter often require staking and some early pruning to prevent leaning and blowover due to a heavy crown and unstable root system. Size Pruning The only way you can stop the growth of an elm tree is to kill it. If you must reduce the elm's size, use pruning cuts rather than topping.

Topping, also called heading, involves.