Pruning a young pine: the detail that decides whether it becomes dense or sparse

What you are doing can work, but pine does not behave like many deciduous shrubs. It makes poor new growth from old, bare wood, so cutting far back into older branches often makes it sparser rather than more compact. Your pine looks healthy and is still at a good stage for shaping.

The best approach for a young pine

To keep it low and dense, concentrate on the current year’s new shoots, the pale ‘candles’ that appear in early summer. Pinch or cut away roughly one third to half of each new tip shoot before the needles have fully opened. This slows extension growth and encourages denser branching.

If you want to restrict height more than width, concentrate on the leading shoot and shorten the side shoots a little less. Cutting every shoot equally hard can make the pine unnaturally rounded. Do not cut back into sections without needles, as they rarely regrow.

What to do in late August

In Hartungviken, Sweden, it is now too late to pinch this year’s shoots. Do not prune hard now. If one shoot is extending too far, leave it until early summer next year. At most, remove a small dead or damaged branch now, and save shaping until new shoots appear next season.