Transitions

By the time August rolls around I am soooo ready for autumn to arrive. Im not sure why so I blame it on my love of fall color and cool/warm temperature and… my birthday in November.

Most likely it is because August is a transition month. The plants are already transitioning to fall even if its not obvious.  Any new candles that pushed out in July on my Japanese black pines won’t open up. Its like they stall out and wait patiently until next spring. (I am in Portland, Oregon so it may be different depending on where you live.)

In 2019 I watched a video by Ryan Neil in his Mirai Live program. He talked about a one week period in August, the 7th to the 14th, in the northern hemisphere when the Japanese black pine is transitioning from foliar growth to vascular growth. During this seven day stretch the trees will have a specific reaction to targeted pruning that can be used in special situations for developing a bonsai tree. Its too long to go into here but I tried it as an experiment on a pine in the garden and found I didn’t like the resulting reactive growth. Especially on a landscape tree which is 10 times more reactive than a bonsai would be.

I am still fascinated by this very short transition time. One week seems like a drop in the bucket of time and I wonder what other trees have this kind of window for transitioning in the seasons.  Much of aesthetic pruning relies on knowing how a plant will react to pruning. Otherwise it is near impossible to prune with design intent.

This is a long rambling way to tell you I listed to the most interesting podcast about phenology and I think you will enjoy it too! Phenology is about biological rhythms of the seasons so its not just about plants but animals too. While there are some disturbing developments caused by climate change there are also ways we can connect to the plants and animals we have through observation and understanding.

The podcast is episode 417 of The Joe Gardner Podcast and he is interviewing Theresa Crimmins. She is an associate professor at the University of Arizona in Tucson and the director of the USA National Phenology Network.

There is also a way to participate in documenting changes in nature near you with an app called Nature’s Notebook.

I haven’t had the chance to explore the app but it seems like pruners who return to the same trees every year might be interested in something like this.

I hope you are enjoying this seasonal transition and be sure to check out the list of events below.

Going ons

Conference

Registration is OPEN for the North America Japanese Garden Association 7th International Japanese Garden conference  October 15-18, 2025 in St. Louis, MO. I will be giving a presentation about pruning language as well as leading a hands-on pruning workshop. Check out my Youtube testimonial!

Zoom Presentation

The Aesthetic Pruners Association next New Professionals talk will be about ergonomics and body health with Summer Prueitt who is a physical therapist and personal trainer. It takes place on Zoom August 24th, 2025 from 3:00 to 5:00pm. It is free for APA members and $25.00 for non-members.

Workshop

Pruning Conifers for Health and Aesthetics

I will be teaching a course for the Gresham Japanese Garden pruning program in person on November 15th, 2025 from 1:00-3:00. Register with the Gresham Japanese Garden here.

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