Step
by Step Pruning for
New Gardeners – Part II
If you have read Part I of the article on pruning, then you will now
have an understanding of the basics of pruning – the “whys” and
“wherefores”!
I now want to take you through the process in more detail with some of
the more common plants you’ll find in gardens.
Spring-flowering
Shrubs
These wonderful plants cheer us up every spring as they burst into
colour – you know the ones I mean: Forsythia,
flowering currant (Ribes) and
mock orange (Philadelphus).
But they do grow quite fast and before you know it, they’ve become
large and tangled but produce fewer and fewer flowers.
To keep on top of them, give them a “haircut” every year, immediately
after flowering, cutting off the flowering stems. Make the cut just
above a strong side shoot that has no dead flower heads. This gives the
plant time to put on new growth throughout the year, ready for
flowering the following spring.
If the shrub has got completely out of hand, then it will certainly not
harm it to cut it right back. Cut some of the older stems out
completely from the base to allow for air circulation and don’t be
afraid to take off whole branches. Try not to just trim bits off here
and there, which really won’t make much difference to the plant and
will just waste your time.
Roses
Forgive the pun – but pruning roses has always been a thorny subject!
However, it has become a lot less so over recent years and much more
straightforward. I’ll divide bush-type roses into two types, shrub
roses, and the large-flowered and cluster-flowered roses (these last
two are otherwise known as hybrid teas and floribunda):
Shrub roses
– these roses don’t really need much cutting back at all, just cut
about 10-15 cms (4-6 inches) of stem along with the dead flower head
during the summer;
Hybrid tea and
floribunda roses – these roses need to be cut hard back every
year. Prune all stems down to about 15-24 cms (6-9 inches) above
the ground every winter or early spring. Remember to cut just above an
outward facing bud, and cut out all thin, weak stems and any dead wood.
Clematis
This is another group of plants that cause a few headaches for new
gardeners, compounded by the fact that experts give conflicting advice.
If you buy a clematis, then read and keep the label and follow the
advice on it. If you inherit a clematis in the garden, then you will
have to wait until it flowers to help you identify it, so that you know
how to treat it.
I have come to the conclusion that for us, normal, average, every day
gardeners, you can’t go far wrong by remembering this simple rule: if
it flowers before the end of June, prune it immediately after it
finishes flowering, cutting side shoots back to a couple of buds from
the main branches: if it flowers later in the summer or early autumn,
then you can cut it hard back to within 15 cms (6 inches) of the ground
in late winter.
Pruning for
colourful winter stems
There is a group of plants that can look stunning in the winter garden,
giving colourful winter stems, such as red or yellow dogwoods (Cornus) and some willows. It is the
young new stems that provide the colour, so each year the older stems
are cut right out.
You
can either prune all the stems right down to almost ground level, or if
you feel this is just a little too drastic, then remove about half of
the stems, making sure that it’s the older stems you remove – these
will be darker and not so colourful. You can do this in late winter or
early spring just as the plant starts to produce new growth.
I hope that I have been able to de-mystify the subject of pruning for
you, and that you will feel more confident to tackle this task in your
garden.
Enjoy your gardening!
Fran Barnwell
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Fran Barnwell
Rowan House,
Gunnislake, Cornwall, PL18 9NT
© Fran Barnwell
All Rights Reserved
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