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| I have a few unruly shurbs that I want to tidy up a bit.
Would you tidy up now, late fall or early spring? I'm mainly referring to non-flowering shrubs...Dappled Willow (I just want to maximize the white in spring) and Dwarf Arctic Willow. |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| The issue with late season pruning is that it often encourages a flush of new growth. If that new growth doesn't have time to harden off before the first frost/freeze, that growth will get killed. |
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- Posted by gardengal48 PNW zone 8 (My Page) on Wed, Aug 4, 10 at 10:07
| Late winter or early spring would be the best time. btw, all shrubs flower......the ones mentioned just do not bloom heavily or offer large, showy flowers, but they do bloom. |
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| If you wish to remove an arrant branch or two, there is not problem with pruning at this time. However, the removal of too many branches or branch tips will result in that flush of growth you've been warned about. |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Fri, Aug 6, 10 at 12:40
| listen.. THE BOTTOM LINE .... if they are really irritating you .. just do it.. and suffer with the consequences of little or lack of bloom next year ... the odds of harming its well being [other than flower] ... are low to nil ... what i find.. as time goes on.. i want it done now.. and then put it off until next year.. and guess what.. next year never comes.. lol .. and 5 years later... i have to run it over with my truck ... lol just do it.. if they are bugging you ken |
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| Thats funny...I just got back in from pruning them, they were bothering me with there gangly, unruly, excessive growth, lol. After all they are willows, so I'm thinking they'll be fine. |
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| There's an optimum time and a convenient time. They don't always coincide. Like Ken says, if you wait for the right time, you'll miss it. In your case with Willows at this time, I don't think you did wrong. So what if the new growth dies back in the winter. You'll just end up with a lot more new growth in the Spring. That's what you're after anyway. You won't kill them by pruning now.....or anytime, for that matter. They're Willows, after all. I prune the larger branches back further into the shrub than the smaller ones to avoid that sheared look. I only shear topiary and I have very little of that. |
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