To Prune or Not to Prune Is A Very Good Question????

According to Nancy Brachey of the Charlotte Observer, it is time to prune most evergreens from now until midspring. This is the best growth spurt of the year for hollies, boxwoods, laurels, ligustrums, cleyera and other evergreens.

If you prune now, the plants will come down to the height & shape you want. Most evergreen hollies can be heavily sheared to create a uniform hedge. But laurels and boxwoods are best pruned by thinning selected, wayward stems. Cut the steam back to the main branch.

Most roses benefit from pruning in late winter because they bloom on new growth. Pruning stimulates this and creates a better looking plant. Their new growth starts to appear in late winter. Knock Out shrub roses should be pruned back to 24 to 30 inches tall, keeping a roundish shape. A butterfly bush can be cut well back because it produces vigorous new growth that bears flowers in summer.

Tt is not time yet to prune flowering shrubs such as azaleas, forsythia, rhododendrons, pleris, loropetalums & other flowering shrubs as well as most garden hydrangeas & gardenias that bloom in early summer because their bloom buds are set. Major pruning should be done when flowers begin to fade. Happy gardening everyone!