Best Time to Prune for Healthier Plants
Late Winter to early Spring (July – August), is the best time to prune deciduous shrubs and trees while they are dormant to ensure strong, healthy growth and encourage plenty of flowers and fruit in the coming seasons. There is also less risk of any infection in the cut branches.
When pruning shrubs that have branches bearing berries remember to leave a few berries for hungry and grateful birds.
Evergreen shrubs can be pruned as and when necessary, and flowering varieties of evergreens should be pruned after the flowers have faded. Reshaping an evergreen shrub is best tackled in Spring.
Before beginning any pruning its important to ensure that your secateurs, garden shears or saws are sharp and well-oiled to ensure clean cuts and avoid the risk of disease.
Begin by pruning a few branches and keep checking that you are satisfied with the shape or height before continuing. Once it’s cut it can’t be put back! Concentrate on removing diseased, damaged and dead branches or any that cross over each other and are likely to rub. Thin out small stems growing out from larger branches to allow light to reach any new growth through the centre of the shrub.
Winter and Spring Pruning Tips for Trees and Shrubs
When hard pruning shrub roses in late July and August remove any diseased wood and leaves, making sure any fallen leaves are cleared away from the base of the plant.
Prune any branches that are growing in toward the centre of the shrub. The ideal shape of the rose bush is an open ‘cup’ with a rounded dome-shaped top.
Fruit trees, such as Peach, Plum, Apple, Pear and Apricot should be pruned in July – August to guarantee a bountiful harvest.
Citrus trees need very little radical pruning, mainly just to remove any branches showing signs of disease and also to thin out a few branches if necessary to allow more light to reach into the tree.
