The Best Time to Prune a Chinese Pistache Tree

Pruning Requirements

• The Chinese pistache tree naturally has very few branches. Whatever branches do grow on the tree tend to grow in a cluster from a single point on the trunk. This is why the tree needs to undergo special pruning and requires training from the very start in order to develop a sturdier, rounded, multi-branched form, as suggested by the University of Florida Extension.

Pruning Time

• The best time to prune the Chinese pistache tree is during the winter, recommends Judy Lowe in Ortho's All About Pruning. Winter is the preferred time for pruning deciduous trees like the Chinese pistache for several reasons. The lack of leaves makes its easy to view the branching structure of the tree and allows for more targeted pruning. Insects and disease are also not active during the winter and this decreases chances of infection through pruning cuts.

Pruning Young Trees

• Remove the top of young saplings to force the growth of multiple branches from the start. Select a single branch to be the trunk and remove all other branches. Once the tree is taller, prune off the top again, spacing the new pruning cut 1 1/2 to 2 feet above the earlier cut. This will encourage further branch growth. Continue pruning until a well developed form and shape is achieved with multiple branches.

Pruning Mature Trees

• Once trees are older and more mature, prune to remove any branches that have a downward growth. Also remove branches that are developing very narrow crotches and any dead branches. Take care to thin the branches laterally with the aim to reduce any increasing weight on scaffolds. Avoid planting the Chinese pistache in too much shade because this leads to a poor growth and shape.