Pruning Guides

Quick Answer Cut back deciduous ornamental grasses such as Miscanthus, Calamagrostis, Panicum and Pennisetum in late February or March, to about 10 to 15cm above the ground, before the new shoots grow through. Never cut evergreen grasses such as Carex, Festuca or Stipa gigantea to the ground. Comb out the dead leaves in spring instead. […]

Quick Answer: For branches between 25mm and 50mm thick, quality bypass tree loppers are the right tool. The Felco 221-80 is my top pick, since its 80cm handles reach most jobs without a ladder. For thicker or dead wood, a telescopic ratchet anvil lopper such as the Spear & Jackson Razorsharp handles what secateurs cannot. […]

Quick Answer Prune a plum tree in September, straight after harvest, and never in winter. Plums belong to the Prunus family alongside cherries, and a winter cut leaves the wound open to silver leaf disease and bacterial canker for months in cold, damp weather. Remove dead or crossing wood first, thin any congested growth, and […]

🌿 Quick Answer Winter pruning happens while plants are dormant and encourages vigorous new growth, so it suits apples, roses, wisteria and gooseberries. Summer pruning happens while plants are in leaf and restricts growth while boosting flowers and fruit, so it suits plums, cherries, forsythia and trained fruit trees. Get the season wrong on a […]

Every year, right around the time the weather turns and clients start ringing me about getting their hedges sorted for summer, I have some version of the same conversation. Someone wants a hedge cut back hard, right now, and I have to explain why we’re either waiting a few weeks or checking very carefully first. […]

Quick Answer Prune most conifers between April and August while they’re actively growing, and only ever cut fresh green growth, never back into old brown wood, since it won’t regenerate. Yew and young Thuja are the main exceptions that can tolerate a hard prune. Always check for nesting birds first, use sharp, sanitised tools, and […]

Quick Answer To sharpen secateurs, clean the blades, then draw a wetted 1000 grit whetstone along the bevelled outer edge of the cutting blade at 20 to 25 degrees, always working away from the edge, for about two minutes. Take the burr off the flat side with two light passes, never more, then oil the […]

Quick Answer Prune apple trees between November and late February while they are dormant. Remove dead, damaged or crossing wood first, shorten this year’s new growth by a quarter, take out any double leaders, then thin congested growth back to an outward facing bud to keep an open goblet shape. Every garden should have at […]

Quick Answer Cut hedges with sharp, clean tools working from the bottom upwards in a sweeping motion, keeping the sides slightly narrower at the top so light reaches the base. Most hedges need trimming twice a year, in spring and late summer, and UK law protects nesting birds, so always check the hedge for nests […]

Quick Answer Lavender usually fails to flower because of too much shade, soil that’s too rich or too wet, or a lack of annual pruning that has let it become woody. Check the season and variety first, then work through sunlight, soil, watering and pruning history. Most causes are fixable within a single growing season. […]