If the bushes in your garden are overgrown, you probably have the urge to begin cutting them. But before you make haphazard move, you have to know some basic things about lawn care chores such as pruning shrubs.
How to start pruning shrubs?
Start your lawn care Myrtle Beach routine by pruning damaged or dead branches using a saw, lopper, or shear. Your tools have to be sharp so it could create clean and straight cuts. It is not a good idea to leave ragged edges. Think about using bypass loppers or anvil pruners because they can let smaller hands cut branches up to 1 ½ inches thick. You should have a wood saw, small powered chainsaw, or a metal hacksaw if you need to make cuts on trunks and thicker branches.
Where should you start cutting?
You should prune above the branch collar, which is a bumpy tissue that forms a small ring at the junction of the main trunk and the branch. The bumpy part is filled with plant growth cells. If you leave this part intact, your shrub will have better chances to recover and grow back. Always cut at a 45-degree angle. A flat cut will cradle alter, which will invite disease and fungus.
Pruning Shrubs
Use the heading back pruning technique for a more natural look. Find the tallest main branch. With your hand and eye, follow it until it you reach the lower side brand that is more likely pointing upwards. Cut it off on the part that is just above the lower one. Do the process again on all the main branches. Don’t forget to step back to check the results.
Needled Evergreens
You can prune needled evergreens in early spring. That’s fine as long as you don’t overdo it. Once you need signs of new growth, you can prune again so you can reduce the evergreen shrubbery’s height. Dealing with needle evergreens can be tricky. In case you prune just below the green growth, you might not see a new branch sprout again.
Foundation Plantings
For the bushes in the foundation plantings, you should prune away branches that are rubbing against a wall or house. Your neighbors will not see the backside of the plant, so you should cut back for as much as 12 inches of clearance. Lawn care experts say that this will help improve the circulation of air around the branches at the back and lead to a healthier bush.
When Should You Prune?
Do you have to cover the cuts with wax or tree paint? No. If you have created an angled and good cut at the right time, every species will heal its wounds safely without any damage from disease, insects, or frost.
The right time to prune pines and other needled evergreens is during the winter dormant period. It’s trickier to trim flowering shrubs because doing so in the wrong time can mean you won’t see any flowers next year. The general rule is that when the bush blooms during the fall season or late summer, you must prune it during the early spring before new growth comes up. On the other hand, in case the plant flowers during the spring season or in the early summer, you have to wait until it has completed its flowering before you can start pruning.
Call Conner’s Lawn Care Service and let our team of experts help you with your lawn care needs.
Conner’s Lawn Care Service
Myrtle Beach, SC
843-504-4901
http://connerslawncare.com/