Trees and Shrubs Trimming

A pair of good garden shears or an electric trimmer is the most suitable tool for trimming formal hedges. Sometimes formal hedges boast of topiary art. Eugenia, boxwood and privets lend themselves to topiary art, and these have to be sheared regularly to maintain their shape. Most informal hedges do not need regular trimming, but it would be good to prune any straggly growths with a sharp pair of secateurs.

This makes the hedge look natural and soft. Care should be taken while trimming flowering hedges. If trimmed too often, they will produce very few blooms.

Conifers and Evergreens like the rhododendron, acuba and the laurel, which have large leaves, are best trimmed with secateurs, so that the cuts are made on the wood.

Trees, on the other hand, do not need regular pruning as most of them should be allowed to grow to their natural shapes. What needs to be pruned are the dead or diseased branches during the winter. Sometimes a branch that crosses over to the trunk over other branches, needs to be pruned.

Snags, (which are standing partly or completely dead trees), must not be left after the branches have been cut off, or these may encourage diseases to enter the trees. Large cuts should be made smooth with a pruning knife and then painted with a bituminous paint to prevent entry of diseases. The pruning of ornamental plums, peaches and cherries is best carried out in the growing season soon after they flower. This would be in June, July or August. At this time of the year the cut heals quickly and there is less likelihood of them being infected by the Silverleaf, which is a fungal disease.

Trees which have been grafted, such as the ornamental cherries, peaches and plums, are often troubled with rootstock suckers. They may emerge either from below the ground or from the trunk of the tree below the graft union.

These should be cut back to their point of origin. Trimming your hedge before the fall and winter months also means that the new growth will happen only with spring flowering shrubs. The sides of the hedge should be trimmed at a slight angle so that it is wider at the base and slightly condensed at the top. This would allow sunlight to fall on all the leaves even those that are lower down. Always remember to disinfect the secateurs or shears after using them