Skillful pruning helps determine how prolifically shrubs fill out and bloom. Follow these tips to keep your shrubbery thriving.
Timing of pruning
Pruning branches encourages growth and should occur at the right time of year. New growth from pruning needs to mature to the woody stage to provide blooms. For most bushes, the best pruning time is late winter/early spring, right on the threshold of spring warmth.
By trimming at that time, new growth will arrive in the spring, when shrubs can add new leaves in abundance with less fear of a freeze. This is true for both non-flowering bushes and ones that bloom. Only an unexpected, late-season frost could set back your shrubs.
Shrubs that benefit from late-winter/early-spring pruning are those that bloom midsummer into fall, which include:
- Butterfly bush
- Hibiscus
- Japanese spirea
- Hydrangeas
Then there are the shrubs that bloom earlier, in spring or early summer; pruning work is done the year before. Good pruning in late spring, before Memorial Day, produces results for the following year. Bushes in this category include:
- Azalea
- Lilac
- Camellia
- Viburnum
Avoid pruning these plants in late summer and fall. Cutting too close to winter risks an early frost, damaging tender growth and setting the plants back for the following spring.
How to prune
Use clean, sharp tools. Handheld shears are best for branches up to half an inch thick, a two-handed lopper works for branches up to 2 inches in diameter, and a saw is preferable for branches bigger than 2 inches.
Cut away dead branches at either the trunk of the bush or tree—or at the point where the dead portion is gone, and green is still present.
There are two main types of pruning:
- Heading cuts are used to trim on the upward side, just outside a node with a bud on the branch. This stimulates new growth from the bud.
- Thinning cuts are used to clear out entangled, densely packed branches. These should be cut at the main trunk. Thinning creates better air circulation and helps concentrate growth in fewer branches.
You can also tame unruly branches and steer growth where you want by trimming away branches striking out in an unwanted direction. Again, trim these at their base on the parent branch.
Related – How to Safely Prune a Tree
