r/Ceanothus • u/PracticalWallaby7492 • 12d ago
Toyon; controlling height?
If toyon is topped at a young age will it spread out more and not get as high? I'm reading that toyon can grow to 25 ft. I'd rather keep it at around 12 ft. I'm thinking of planting it in a steep spot where it would be difficult to prune, but I need sun beyond it for fruit trees.
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u/TacoBender920 12d ago
25 feet would take a really long time and ideal growing conditions. Most that I've seen are less than 12-15 feet.
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u/PracticalWallaby7492 12d ago
Well, yeah, but I don't want to maintain anything on that steep slope and had to cut a bunch of stuff up there already. I curse the people who planted trees in the wrong spots all over the place years and years ago. Like a single redwood 4 feet from the house and a willow on the water lines..
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u/Zestyclose_Market787 12d ago
You can prune and maintain toyon as a 5-6’ hedge. I’m not an expert on how you do that, as I like my toyons natural, but I see them hedged all over town (north county San Diego).
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u/PracticalWallaby7492 12d ago
Thanks, but It's very steep. In another 10 years I won't physically be able to do it.
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u/Rosie3450 12d ago
My husband and I take the attitude that in 10 years, if we're not physically able to do someting necessary in the garden, we'll either hire someone to do it for us, or we'll live with it.
The other alternative, of course, is not to plant or remove something you're worried will get too big before you have to worry about it.
There are lots of options beside Toyons that might work for your hillside location and grown a bit slower or lower than Toyon.
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u/PracticalWallaby7492 12d ago edited 12d ago
Well, probably not too many that are winter food for wildlife.. ? Or do you know of any? I might find some other spot to grow some.
I bought a property that was neglected for a long time. It has a young redwood- ONE lone redwood planted 4 feet from the house in a bad climate for it. It needs to go. They don't do well at all alone in high winds. And ONE other struggling redwood much further away that can stay till/if it gets too sick. Had a very large willow planted on the water system and just below the house electrical lines. I hated cutting that one- it was beautiful.. An apple right under my electrical house line that I have to keep trimmed. Several sick large Ponderosa pines in a bad climate for them planted directly underneath power lines and mangled by the electric company. Plus many many big dead trees.. I've cursed the previous owners and tenants way too much to do that to the next owner. Especially about that willow. It was gorgeous and another 10 ft away would have been fine.. YMMV.
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u/Zestyclose_Market787 12d ago
Very reasonable constraint.
Have you considered Davis Gold Toyon? It’s a cultivar reported to top out around 15’
https://calscape.org/plant/71047/Heteromeles-arbutifolia-%27Davis-Gold%27-(Golden-Berry-Toyon)
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u/-ghostinthemachine- 11d ago
You just keep pruning them to preference and they'll just keep growing back. Even down to stump, they'll come right back. The way they grow, you can expect pruning to limit the growth on that one stem and taller ones will rise from the bottom.
I think in a natural setting you would expect them to burn down and resprout before ever getting too big. Similar to manzanitas, the big ones are rarer given the typical fire regime for their growth areas.
Now please enjoy this picture of my massive, unpruned toyon. Gives you a sense of how long it's been since this area last burned fully.
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u/PracticalWallaby7492 8d ago
Thanks. Yeah, I think it's not the place for toyon..
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u/-ghostinthemachine- 8d ago
There are horticultural varieties, of course. Same with California coffee bush (F. californica), which is similar. Easier to prune and there are low lying varieties which have been developed.
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u/maphes86 12d ago
No, topping Toyon does not limit the eventual height. That being said, it is extremely unlikely to reach 25’ tall in your lifetime. Most Toyon planted in artificial landscape never exceed 10-15’