Pruning Your Landscape Plants

Pruning is the process of removing select branches from a tree, shrub or vine. When done properly it can greatly enhance the visual appearance of a landscape plant while also helping to promote plant health and extend the life of the plant. It can be a challenging and rewarding activity and there are many different pruning techniques to choose from. It is important to understand the reasons and purposes for pruning a particular plant before you start trimming. Steve likens it to raising children – if you don’t guide them during their early and formative years, they may grow up with some problems that will be very difficult to correct later.

There are two basic pruning strategies, thinning and heading back, that can be used in combination to keep a plant at a desired size, shape and density. Problems tend to arise when either thinning or heading back is used continuously without the other.

Thinning involves the selective removal of specific live branches to reduce the overall density of a plant or to open up a crown for greater sunlight penetration and air circulation. This can be especially helpful for plants that are overgrown or to remedy damage from storms, wind, ice or snow. Heading back involves the selective removal of current year’s growth or one-year old shoots. This can be a very effective way to shorten the length of a branch or twig but should not be used to reduce a plant’s height or to remove large amounts of foliage because this stresses a tree and can cause future problems.

Other pruning techniques are often used to train a plant into a desired shape or to create highly specialized forms such as espaliers, topiaries and pollards. Generally speaking, these forms should be pruned in winter since it is easier to see the shape of the plant and it can be much more cost-effective than summer pruning.

Timing of pruning is very important and varies by species. Plants that flower in spring should be pruned right after they bloom and plants that flower in late summer should be pruned shortly before the end of that season. This allows the plant time to set new buds before the cold winter temperatures interfere with their growth.

When using hand pruning shears it is best to cut above a bud or an internode (the area of stem between buds). This allows the bud or twig to develop a new growing point that will be more productive and resistant to disease and insect damage than a stub or bare limb. It is also a good idea to use alcohol or other disinfectants between each cut to prevent the spread of disease. Avoid the use of a commercial dressing or pruning paint as research suggests that they do not add any value to a correctly pruned cut and can actually harm the tree or shrub by inhibiting its natural defenses through the formation of woundwood.

source https://experttreeremovalptyltd.wordpress.com/2025/07/20/pruning-your-landscape-plants/