A Tale of a Street and Two Trees…

,
Olive tree

Last month as I was leaving from a landscape consultation, I took some time to drive by a few of the landscapes in the neighborhood.  

I immediately noticed that quite a few people had Olive trees growing in their front yards.

Olive tree

Olive tree

There was a large difference in how some of the homeowners pruned their Olive trees…

Olive tree

Believe it or not, both of the trees pictured above are the same type of Olive tree.

Some people like to formally prune their Olive trees while others like theirs to grow naturally.

Which one would you prefer?

Olive tree

OR

Olive tree

I know which look I prefer and it is much healthier for the tree and much less maintenance.

How about you?

Which style of pruning do you like – formal or natural?

Noelle Johnson, aka, 'AZ Plant Lady' is a author, horticulturist, and landscape consultant who helps people learn how to create, grow, and maintain beautiful desert gardens that thrive in a hot, dry climate. She does this through her consulting services, her online class Desert Gardening 101, and her monthly membership club, Through the Garden Gate. As she likes to tell desert-dwellers, "Gardening in the desert isn't hard, but it is different."
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5 replies
  1. Gardens at Waters East
    Gardens at Waters East says:

    Noelle, Interesting how that same type of tree can look so different. I think with the style of house I prefer the trimmed form. I trim one of my trees (a Scott Pine) something like that in my Asian Garden. Gives me the right look for that patio space. I like the contrast you did in the posting today. Jack

  3. College Gardener
    College Gardener says:

    Definitely prefer the natural look. Those lollypop-shaped things are just weird. What is the point of growing olive trees if they look nothing like olive trees?

  4. Aaron Dalton
    Aaron Dalton says:

    Prefer the natural approach.

    Although I think those olive trees are too large (if grown naturally) for those size lots. IMHO, they totally dominate the lot and loom over the houses.

    Just my 2 cents.

  5. xericstyle
    xericstyle says:

    Natural all the way! The pruning looks okay….but natural is so much prettier…creates shade….seems to serve more desirable purposes…

Comments are closed.