Pruning

You need to prune your plants, shrubs, and trees to get them in the shape you want, to encourage growth and blooms or fruit, and to prevent the spread of disease

When should you prune?

Prune spring flowering shrubs and trees after they bloom. For summer blooming ones, wait until fall or anytime up until just before new growth appears in the spring. Some plants only bloom on two year old growth so get to know your own shrubs and trees a bit.

Anytime of the year, you generally want to remove branches that rub together or are dead or even just broken. Pests can enter into a plant at the point where branches break or rub together.

How do you prune?

Make sure your pruning shears are sharp so you can make a nice clean cut. Generally, you want to cut at an angle, away from what are called lateral buds, where smaller stems and leaves will sprout. Go about a quarter of an inch above the lateral buds (to the outside of the plant, toward the tip of the branch).