How to Prune Plants Properly

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Like humans, plants need their health taken care of as well. Pruning is one of the best ways you can support the health of your plants! It’s important to cut away the old, dead parts so that the plant can produce new growth. While this may sound fairly simple, pruning plants can be tricky. For one, you need to know when to prune plants. If you do it at the wrong time, you can prevent the plant from blooming or cause it bloom only to have those blooms die quickly once the weather changes. You also need to know the proper way to prune plants – where to make the cut and what needs to be removed.

First, let’s talk about when to prune plants…

Flowering Trees and Shrubs

Let’s talk about flowering trees and shrubs. Examples of some of these are shrub roses, hibiscus, hydrangeas and azaleas. When it comes to these plants, a general rule to remember is to prune them in their dormant season. That means that if the plant blooms in the fall, you should prune it in the early spring and if it blooms in the summer, you should prune it in late winter. If you have plants that bloom in the spring, you should prune the plant soon after the flowers die and fall the previous year.

Perennial Plants

Many people think that once you plant perennials, the work is over and they’ll simply bloom again the next year without any needed extra work. However, just like any other plant, these plants need pruning too. When to prune these plants depends on what it is that you’re planting. Here’s a list for when to prune a few of the most popular perennials.

Prune these in the spring:

Asters
Black-Eyed-Susan
Goldenrod
Hostas
Lavender
Mums

Prune these in the fall:

Bearded Iris
Daylily
Hardy Bergonias
Painted Daisy
Peony
Plume Poppy

Let’s talk about how to make the cut…

Remember that it’s important that you remove dead or diseased parts of plants as soon as you see them. Dead parts of plants attract insects and disease. Always cut below any areas where a new bud might form and make cuts at angles. Keep in mind that where you’re making cuts, new foliage is going to grow back where the old has been removed. This is important to keep in mind if you’re pruning to create or maintain shape in your plant.

Be sure that whenever or whatever you’re pruning, always use a good pair of sheers or hand pruners. It’s important to the health of the plants that the tool that you’re using is sharp. It also makes your job easier!

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