Pruning trees and shrubs is essential for maintaining their health, encouraging growth, and enhancing the beauty of your garden. However, pruning at the wrong time can harm your plants. Here’s a practical guide to help you determine when to prune your trees and shrubs throughout the year.
– Type of Pruning: Structural pruning.
– Best for: Deciduous trees.
– Why prune in winter?
– During dormancy, plants experience less stress.
– It allows you to shape the trees for balanced growth in spring.
– Avoid pruning during severe frosts.
– Remove dead, diseased, or crossing branches.
– Type of Pruning: Light pruning after frost.
– Best for: Shrubs with summer blooms (e.g., hydrangeas).
– Why prune in spring?
– Encourages new growth and prepares shrubs for abundant summer flowers.
– Do not prune spring-flowering shrubs (e.g., forsythia) before they bloom, or you’ll lose the flowers.
– Type of Pruning: Light shaping.
– Best for: Spring-flowering shrubs.
– Why prune after flowering?
– Helps maintain an attractive shape and promotes the development of new flower buds for the next year.
– Avoid heavy pruning in late autumn, as it may weaken the plants before winter.
By following these seasonal pruning techniques, you’ll keep your trees and shrubs healthy and beautiful all year round. Happy gardening!
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