Heavier pruning should be performed when the tree is dormant, preferably in late winter before active growth begins. Trees such as maple Acer trees bleed sap heavily and should be pruned in winter while the trees are dormant. Spring flowering shrubs such as lilac and forsythia bloom on the previous season's growth and should be pruned within two weeks after flowering.
Pruning at any other time will reduce or eliminate the flower display. Most conifers require minimal pruning that will also vary with species. It keeps them in shape, encourages new growth, gets rid of dead and diseased wood, and allows light and air to reach the plant. This helps give the plants time to set new buds and flower again next season. For instance, you can remove dead or damaged parts of your shrubs or hedges whenever you see them.
Spring is a beautiful time for gardening. Please feel free to call us at for all of your landscaping and irrigation questions or needs. Test Garden Tip: To control the spread of diseases while pruning, dip your pruning shears in rubbing alcohol or a solution of one part bleach to nine parts water.
Most broadleaf evergreens, including holly , mahonia , and some types of magnolias , don't need much pruning. The best time to prune them is in early spring, just before they put on their growth spurt.
You can do minor shaping and pruning at other times of year, too. Test Garden Tip: Save on holiday decorations by snipping a few branches for winter holiday greenery. Most trees and shrubs with needlelike or scalelike foliage spruce , juniper , cypress , arborvitae , fir, yew , Douglas fir , and false cypress are best pruned early in the growing season.
Avoid cutting back into wood that doesn't have any green needles; it may not sprout new growth. Like broadleaf evergreens, you can trim a few branch tips in midwinter to take some greenery indoors. True pines are pickier about their pruning needs than other needle-leaf evergreens. Pines only form buds at branch tips before the stem becomes woody.
For the best results, only prune pines in the candle stage: Before the new shoots turn woody and before the needles have fully expanded.
Prune just a portion of the new growth , removing up to half of the expanding candle. Most perennial flowers look best if you remove faded flowers, called deadheading. As a bonus, many perennials will push out another cycle of blooms after deadheading. If your perennial flowers become too tall and leggy, or flop open in the middle, try shearing them back to inches above the ground.
This type of haircut causes them to branch and become stockier. Deadhead annual flowers regularly to keep them blooming well. Removing the old flowers prevents them from setting seed and allows plants to put more energy into blooming.
Some annuals like petunias sprawl and develop bare stems at their bases. As with perennials, you can shear these rangy plants to force more compact growth and renewed bloom.
The most productive portions of blueberry , gooseberry , and currant bushes are stems that are three years old or less. To maintain a constant supply of productive wood, prune out about a third of the oldest stems on these shrubs each winter.
Cut the old stems off at ground level. Raspberries and blackberries grow on long stems called canes.
On most types, the cane doesn't fruit until its second year of growth. After bearing fruit, that cane dies. But new first-year canes develop at the same time, and will bear fruit the following year. Remove two-year-old canes soon after they finish bearing. They won't fruit again, and they can spread disease if left to grow. Pinch back the tips of first-year canes when they reach about feet to cause the cane to branch.
Everbearing types of raspberries are an exception. They form a late-summer crop on the tips of first-year canes, so don't pinch them back in midsummer. Instead, allow the canes to flower and fruit for a fall crop. Remove the stem tips that have produced fruit in winter. The following summer the lower portion of the stem will fruit. After it finishes bearing, completely remove the fruited cane.
Grapes grow vigorously and need extensive pruning each year to keep them productive. Most training systems for grapes involve developing a main stem or trunk with several lateral stems or arms. Grapes fruit on lateral shoots from the current season's woody growth.
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