Carol Reese, home gardening expert with the University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service, offers information on correct pruning methods for shrubs. You'll save yourself a great deal of labor by selecting slow-growing plants that don't need a lot of pruning. Eventually, though, you'll have to take your clippers in hand and prune to control the size of shrubs, improve their shape and remove dead, diseased or injured wood. Before pruning, think about the shrub's purpose in the landscape. If it's a flowering shrub, pruning at the wrong time of year can ruin the display. Some plants bloom on new wood, others on wood formed the previous year. A basic rule for flowering shrubs is to prune just after they've finished flowering. Pussywillow and red-twig dogwood should be cut nearly to the ground to keep plants bushy and full (figure A). Leave only 2" to 4" inches of stem when you prune these plants.
Rhododendrons and azaleas should never be pruned after September, when they're forming buds for next spring's flower display. Prune them just after they flower.
Butterfly bush blooms on new wood, so prune severely in early spring.
When pruning any shrub, first remove dead, diseased or injured wood, then any growth that crosses through the center of the plant to improve air circulation. Finally, prune for shape.
To reduce a shrub's size, increase bloom and control shape, remove some of the branch tips. This process is called heading back. Cut just above a strong bud. To rejuvenate an overgrown, bushy shrub, cut one-third of the branches to the soil line each year. To make a plant less dense, thin by trimming a few limbs to the ground or to a main branch. Thinning improves air circulation and discourages fungal diseases. To keep a plant symmetrical, cut off new shoots as they appear. To increase flower size, trim all branches back. To remove suckers, dig soil from around the base of the plant, and cut them off at the root. To keep growth dense, clip new shoots by half. To keep plants small, head back or thin them. Give narrow-leafed evergreens a light shearing to keep them neat.
RESOURCES :
Gardener's Supply Company
Gardener's Supply Company
Burlington, VT 05401-2850
Fax: 800-551-6712 -or- 80
Email: info@gardeners.com
Website: www.gardeners.com
Easy, Practical Pruning: Techniques for Training Trees, Shrubs, Vines, and Roses
Model: 0395815916
Author: Barbara Ellis
Houghton Mifflin Co.
Boston, MA 02116
Phone: 617-351-5000
Email: tradecustomerservice@hmco.com
GUESTS :
Carol Reese
UT Agricultural Extension Service
5201 Marchant Drive
Nashville, TN 37211-5201
Phone: 615-834-5162
Fax: 615-832-0043
Email: CentralDist@cru.gw.utk.edu
Website: www.utextension.utk.edu
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