How to properly prune ornamental shrubs: basic techniques for gardeners. Proper pruning of ornamental shrubs in autumn When is the best time to trim ornamental shrubs

For a novice gardener, this problem is one of the most painful. How to cut? When to cut? How much to cut? There are so many plants, they are all so different... At some point it may seem that you will never master this wisdom.

In fact, everything is not as difficult as it seems. After gardening for several years, you will intuitively begin to understand how pruning a particular plant depends on the time of its flowering, growth characteristics and branching.

Of course, experimenting for years is not at all necessary. You can open a book and find out everything at once. But here’s the problem: we have a problem with good literature on this topic. One book will intelligently explain to you how to prune summer-blooming and spring-blooming spireas. From the other you will understand how to cut wood. But building a coherent and logical system based on this fragmentary information is very difficult.

At one time I bought all the books in Russian and English languages, on the covers of which it was written: “Cutting...” And finally, I found what I was looking for. It was the English edition: `Successful Pruning`. I flipped through it, and somehow everything immediately fit into my head.

Today we offer you an adapted translation of this publication. Not the whole book, of course. But what seems to us the most important. We offer you a harmonious and understandable, as it seems to us, system for pruning ornamental shrubs.

Actually, the whole system comes down to nine pruning techniques, which will be outlined below.

TECHNIQUE 1. CUT TO MAINTAIN SHAPE

This technique is used for shrubs that are grown in molded hedges and require constant pruning.

So: if you form a hedge in the spring, you remove only the growth of the previous year. If you prefer a haircut in the second half of summer, you will remove the current year’s growth accordingly. You may need to do both spring and summer pruning if you are dealing with fast-growing plants. (Draw your attention to: we're talking about about pruning shrubs that have already been formed for a hedge and have reached the required height and dimensions).

Formative pruning will help you keep the plant neat and compact - in the desired size and shape. And remember: once you have used this type of pruning, it is advisable to do the same thing annually.

Note: small plants can be cut with scissors or electric trimmer. For large ones, you need to use pruning shears, since damaged leaves and stumps remaining from the shoots will turn brown and die.

(For more information on trimming hedges, see the articles on our website.)

Using technique 1, the following are pruned: hedges of barberries, privet, hawthorn, honeysuckle, cotoneaster, snowberry.

It is always recommended to prune Salix lantana using technique 1 to maintain its shape.

TECHNIQUE 2. REMOVING HALF OF THE NEW GROWTH

Do not allow broom and other gorse bushes to spread widely and expose the base. Shorten new growth half every year. Start doing this when the plant is still young. If several years are missed for pruning, in the future young shoots will grow, falling down from the old, coarsened branches, which will sharply reduce the decorative value of the shrub. Trim back any new green shoots to encourage new branches and bush growth. Do not prune onto old, rough wood. Remove dead branches completely.

After pruning, the bush will look more elegant and compact.

Prune shrubs such as gorse after the flowers have faded but before the seeds have ripened.

Using technique 2, the following are pruned: Russian broom, creeping broom, English gorse.

TECHNIQUE 3. CUT OFF DEAD ENDS

Prune heathers and similar plants by removing dead shoot tips with scissors. This will help the plant to be slender and compact and encourage it to bloom.

Once the flowers begin to die, remove them with scissors. Wait until spring to prune fall-blooming heathers.

Remove shoots close to the base of the current year's growth. Do not prune onto old, dark wood.

Technique 3 is used to cut heathers and almost all erics.

TECHNIQUE 4. SHORTENING THE SIDE BRANCHES

We are talking about shrubs that bloom on the shoots of the previous year. As a rule, these are summer-flowering shrubs. Pruning such shrubs stimulates the growth of a large number of lateral branches and more abundant flowering. The shoots should be trimmed by one third from the top to well-developed buds immediately after flowering. (Hydrangea paniculata can be pruned and in early spring, if you want to admire its powerful inflorescences in winter).

After pruning, the plant will not appear to have grown significantly compared to last year. But it will become more compact, and flowering next year will be more abundant.

Using technique 4, the following are pruned: hawthorns, paniculata hydrangea, rugosa rose (if you grow it not for fruits, but for flowering), Erica arborescens. The latter should be cut not by a third, but by two thirds of the shoot.

TECHNIQUE 5. REMOVING ONE STEM OUT OF THREE.

A large number of shrubs that produce many new shoots each year will look healthy and beautiful if you cut back one shoot out of three each year. This very common technique allows the bushes to avoid excessive thickening and also stimulates flowering on strong shoots.

The technique is applied to three groups of bushes:

1. Those that bloom early on the shoots of the previous year (forsythia, Spira vanguta, ornamental currants)
2. Those that bloom profusely throughout almost the entire summer (shrub cinquefoil).
3. To some shrubs that are grown for their beautiful foliage (white turf "Elegantissimo").

This type of pruning should begin when the bush reaches three years of age. And if every year after that you cut out one branch out of three, the bush will look strong and compact at the same time.

Remove one stem out of three, cutting it as close to the ground as possible. Select the weakest and oldest branches first.

After all old and weakened branches have been removed, remove those that extend far from the center of the bush and disrupt the shape of the plant. If you don't see a bud near the ground from which a new shoot can emerge, leave a short stem with a bud. You can later delete this branch as well when there is enough new growth to replace it.

After pruning, the bush may look somewhat sparse. But soon new shoots will appear to fill the space.

Using technique 5, a significant part of the bushes are pruned, if they need to be formed as tapeworms, and not for hedges. Among them are barberries, cotoneasters, hazel, deutzia, white derain "Elegantissima", colkvitia, honeysuckle, sea buckthorn, mahonia, weigela, snowberry, stephanandra tanaki, mock orange, oleaster, ornamental currants, forsythia, cinquefoil, lilac (with a small caveat: remove you need not one of three, but one of four shoots), elderberry (if you need to stimulate not foliage growth, but flowering and fruiting); spirea - arguta, vanguta, thunberga, nipponica, Japanese - "Bumalda" and "Shirobana", viburnum (if you want to keep the bush more compact).

Please note: shrubs that bloom in early spring should be cut only after they have finished flowering. Summer-flowering shrubs can be pruned in early spring.

TECHNIQUE 6. Pruning to the ground

Use this technique to cultivate and improve the development of plants that are thrown away a large number of vigorously growing twigs (such as fragrant raspberry).

Some shrubs, such as ornamental raspberries, send out many new shoots every year. Old branches are best pruned to ground level in early spring.

This pruning is also used in cases where young shoots of plants growing like raspberries have decorative painting. Let's say Rubus cockburnianus has young shoots white. With age, their color changes and becomes less interesting. It is advisable to prune such a plant annually to ground level.

When pruning such plants, you do not need to worry about making a cut to the bud that is visible to you. Young shoots will come directly from underground.

Using technique 6, the following are pruned: decorative raspberries, stephanandra inquisa, bicolor lespedeza.

TECHNIQUE 7. Pruning to the base of the bush (A)

Plants that are grown for their beautifully colored shoots, such as white dogwood, will look more attractive if they are regularly trimmed back to 5cm from the base of the bush to encourage the growth of new shoots.

The same technique is necessary to stimulate the growth of large decorative leaves, such as elderberries with yellow leaves.

Allow the plant to grow a season after planting and then next spring cut it at a height of 5-7 cm from the ground.

We do not recommend cutting plants in this way every year: if the bush is not well fed or poorly mulched, it will be able to throw out only weakened thin stems. But pruning to the base every second year is just what is needed. It will promote the growth of strong, thick stems, and the plant will not need intensive feeding.

Using technique 7, the following are pruned: tree trees with decorative bark and decorative leaves, willows with decorative bark, elderberry - if it is grown for its beautiful leaves.

TECHNIQUE 8. Pruning to the base of the bush (B)

The technique is exactly the same as the previous one. But pruning should be done in the first spring after planting and is required every year without fail. Buddleia and other shrubs that bloom on the current season's growth (such as tree hydrangea) will produce larger flowers on more compact plants if you prune the plant back to 5 to 7 cm from the base of the bush each spring. If this is not done, the plants will produce smaller flowers on spindly, elongated branches.

Trim off all last year's growth, leaving 2 buds at the base. This is usually 5-7 cm on last year's shoots.

If the bush has grown to a very large size and is overcrowded with shoots, cut one or two old stems to ground level. This will allow the plant to conserve energy for better flowering and get rid of poorly placed branches.

After pruning, many bushes can throw out shoots up to one and a half meters or more per season.

The same technique is applicable in the case of dwarf Japanese spirea. By cutting them to the base of the bush, you kill several birds with one stone: you create growing conditions for new strong stems, form a compact, beautifully shaped shrub, and in the case of yellow-leaved spirea, promote the growth of brighter and more expressive foliage.

Using technique 8, the following are pruned: buddleia, tree hydrangea, spirea “Little Princess”, “Golden Princess”, “Gold Mound”, “Nana” and similar ones.

TECHNIQUE 9. Pruning PLANTS WITH GRAY LEAVES

Regular pruning of plants such as lavender helps to create proper compact shape. Start cutting the plant while it is young. If for the first time you resort to severe pruning of an adult plant and cut into old wood, the bush can become very weak and even die. Prune regularly every spring.

If the increase in the current year goes by directly from the base of the bush, cut the plant 5-10 cm from the ground.

Be careful with a mature plant with a woody base that does not have young shoots coming from the ground. Do not cut into old dark wood. Make do with trimming soft shoots from the previous year 5-10 cm from old dark wood.

Using technique 9, the following are pruned: lavender, perovski.

That, in fact, is all the wisdom.

Of course, this scheme needs to be approached creatively. If, say, a shrub, which is usually pruned using technique 5 (one shoot out of three is removed), has grown greatly, lost its attractive shape and begins to bloom worse, it can be radically planted on a stump using technique 8 and thereby be rejuvenated. If the tips of a bush that is pruned using the same technique 5 are frozen, you will still have to not only remove one shoot out of three, but also run pruning shears along the tips of the frozen branches. For example, I don’t really like it when my cinquefoils “Goldfinger” and “Tangerine” fall apart in somewhat shapeless bushes, and therefore every spring I cut them like gorse - by half of last year’s growth. In exactly the same way and for the same purposes, I cut the summer-blooming spirea “Bumlda” and “Shirobana”. Or, for example, paniculata hydrangea. Sometimes you cut it not into a third of the shoot, but much more, in search of a good pair of buds and a beautiful shrub habit as a whole.

In short, it is quite acceptable to deviate from the rules if you know these rules well and have a perfect idea of ​​why you are making this or that movement with the pruning shears.

And finally: any pruning technique must be combined with sanitary pruning - remove all diseased, broken, crooked, weakened branches. But this is already quite simple...

Happy pruning!

Irina SAVVATEEVA, CEO"Savvateev Nursery"

Beautifully flowering and decorative deciduous shrubs are grown in gardens to decorate them at any time of the year. Therefore, it is so important to be able to maintain their beauty by pruning, the purpose of which is to remove dry and damaged shoots, form a crown, stimulate flowering and rejuvenate plants.

Pruning ornamental shrubs in the spring will help not only maintain the health of the plant, but also give it a certain form. From this article you will learn how to properly prune ornamental shrubs in spring and autumn.

In order to carry out pruning correctly and in a timely manner, you need to know the developmental characteristics of each specific plant. Thus, those plants that are subject to decorative thinning in the spring annual gains appear along the perimeter of the crown (viburnum, lilac, cotoneaster, barberry, serviceberry, magnolia, etc.), as well as shrubs whose flowers appear on the shoots of the current year (types of spirea, buddleia, tree and paniculate hydrangeas).

All decorative deciduous species are also subject to annual spring cleaning. Let's take a closer look at the features of pruning the above groups of plants.

Peculiarities

The main purpose of pruning flowering crops is to achieve their abundant flowering. Plants that form annual increments along the perimeter of the crown require minimal thinning. In early spring, before the period of active growth begins, a formative procedure is carried out, removing all dry, intersecting and incorrectly located shoots. It is allowed to remove or trim living shoots to maintain the symmetry of the branches and give the crown a certain shape.

Ornamental plants that bloom on the current year's shoots are thinned out heavily in early spring. The purpose of this procedure is the formation of powerful shoots for future flowering.

Note: Neglecting pruning leads to thickening of the crown and a decrease in the quality of flowering.

You should know that young specimens of this group cannot be heavily cleaned in the first year after planting in order to allow the root system to develop. In subsequent years, they are pruned in the same way as adult plants, that is, by removing all last year's growth to well-developed buds above the older parts of the stem.

Decorative deciduous species (barberry, mackerel, bladderwort, golden form of black elderberry, etc.) are subject to the same strong spring pruning. It is carried out with the aim of stimulating the active growth of young shoots and achieving maximum decorative effect foliage.

When carrying out spring thinning, remember that this procedure is only a small part of the entire range of care measures. ornamental crops. Therefore, try to follow all recommendations regarding the specifics of planting, watering, fertilizing, loosening, pest and weed control. And then your plants will look healthy and beautiful.

Rules

Spring pruning ornamental shrubs is one of the key stages of caring for these crops. That is why it must be carried out in such a way that the plants only benefit from the procedure.

For correct and high-quality pruning, we advise you to listen to these rules(picture 1):

1. The tool must be clean and well sharpened; rusty tools should not be used.
2. The cut should pass over a well-developed vegetative bud. Ideally, it should begin at the level of the base of the kidney with reverse side and end above its top. If you make a cut too far from the bud, then a dry knot will form in this place; if it’s too close, the bud will dry out.
3. To remove a large branch, first of all, you need to remove as many shoots as possible from it, and then cut it down in three sections. This will prevent the wood from splitting and the formation of deep wounds in the bark.
4. The edge of the large cut must be cleaned to prevent moisture from accumulating in the remaining grooves. Then the cut site should be treated with garden varnish or putty. These substances have an antiseptic effect and are impermeable to water. It is recommended to use them 20 minutes after completion of the procedure, but no later than 24 hours.
5. The main principle of pruning is to obtain a crown more Sveta. Therefore, once every 2-3 years, severe thinning is carried out almost to the soil surface. On the other hand, the constant removal of all shoots to a certain height will cause thickening of the crown and a deterioration in the quality of flowering. Thus, the plants lose their decorative properties.
6. Shoots of dwarf species must be shortened by one third every year. In this case, both upward-growing and lateral shoots must be removed.

Trimming hedge, it is necessary to ensure that not only the top of the crown is well illuminated, but also Bottom part plants. Therefore, the crowns should be narrower than their bases.

Timing for pruning ornamental shrubs

There is an opinion that all ornamental plants should be pruned in early spring. However, this is not the case, because different types have their own timing of bud break and degree of shoot development. Therefore, in early spring it is possible to thin out only decorative deciduous species and varieties that bloom on the shoots of the current year.

Those shrubs that bloom on last year's shoots should be pruned after flowering. And some ornamental plants do not tolerate such a procedure at all, because they have a low ability to regenerate. Among these species are magnolia, viburnum, flowering and common dogwood, shadberry, hibiscus, etc.

Pruning ornamental shrubs in spring: video

To properly prune ornamental shrubs in the garden, we recommend that you watch the video, which shows in detail all the stages of this process.

Both spring and autumn treatments have a positive effect on growth, flowering quality and longevity ornamental plants, because in a too thick crown, young shoots are suppressed by old branches, which leads to a reduction in the life of the plant as a whole.

However, incorrect or untimely pruning can harm the plant just as much as neglecting this procedure. Let's take a closer look at which shrubs are subject to autumn pruning and how to do it correctly.

Peculiarities

Autumn pruning is good because it gives you the opportunity to slowly complete everything. necessary work, as plants gradually enter a dormant period. The only condition for such a procedure is to carry it out before the air temperature drops to -10 degrees, when there is a risk of injuring the wood.

Note: Most often, autumn pruning is carried out for sanitary purposes, and for sufficiently mature specimens - for the purpose of rejuvenation. Some species are also subject to autumn formative cleaning. This is how they prune tree and paniculate hydrangea, summer-blooming spirea, fieldfare, David's buddleia, shrubby cinquefoil. In these plants, it is permissible to remove the entire upper part of the current growth, shortening the branches by 10-40 cm.

In the fall, it is recommended to prune varieties that bloom on last year's shoots (crimson, euonymus, bush rowan). Plants such as rose hips, cotoneaster, lilac, mackerel can be pruned both in early spring, before the sap begins to flow, and in the fall, at the end growing season. It is customary to thin out barberry and snowberry late autumn or at the beginning of winter. Irgu, privet, and golden currants are subjected to this procedure immediately after flowering.

Rules

Among the rules for removing branches in the fall are the following:

• First of all, dry and broken shoots are removed.
• All cuts must be made at an angle, and their surface must be smooth, without jagged edges. A garden knife will help smooth out the roughness of the cut.
• Tools must be sharp and clean;
• It is necessary to select the right tools depending on the goal. For example, shoots with a diameter of 2 cm or less are shortened with pruning shears, and for thicker branches you will need a garden hacksaw;
• Pruning should be done carefully, trying not to catch neighboring shoots;
• The cut site should not be too close to the bud and not too far from it, since in the first case it may be damaged, and in the second - the formation of a dry, leafless knot.
• During sanitary cleaning, unripe shoots are removed down to the debarked part of the branch, capturing it, leaving 2 cm above the bud.
• Heavy pruning stimulates the growth of weak branches, but healthy and developed shoots do not need it.

The cut areas must be treated with an antiseptic, for example, garden varnish, and no later than one day after removing the branch.

Pruning trees and shrubs is an integral part of proper care for growing plants. Without this agrotechnical measure, the bushes will not have attractive looking, will lose their shape and cease to please the eye. Also, the lack of timely pruning leads to thickening of the crown. Therefore, pruning should be carried out regularly, taking into account the time of year, as well as the type of crop.

About the procedure methods

Pruning shrubs involves 2 methods:

1. Shortening branches. This method is used if there is a need to get rid of the upper part of the shoot. After this procedure, the diameter of the branches will increase, the shoots will begin to grow faster, and the development of buds will accelerate;
2. Shrub thinning. This involves pruning all branches so that the bushes do not become dense. After this procedure, the plant is not afraid of diseases and pests.

Carrying out these pruning methods has a positive effect on the bush, because all the nutrients that the plant has begin to be redistributed along each branch. Spring pruning of shrubs has a beneficial effect on the plant, and its shoots begin to develop more intensively, the branches become stronger and gain healthy strength. After pruning, the number of buds decreases, and, consequently, the path of movement of nutrients from root to leaf becomes smaller, and crown growth increases significantly.

Shrub pruning

Types of shrub pruning (description, diagram)

Depending on what result is expected to be obtained after removing the shoots, gardeners choose a certain type of pruning. There are 3 types of trimmings:

• rejuvenating;
• formative;
• sanitary

Important! To ensure that the bushes are healthy, attract passers-by with their flowering, lush foliage and correct form, it is recommended to carry out all of the above types of pruning. It is necessary to use any specific type based on the time of year.

Rejuvenating

In order for mature shrubs to bloom lushly, they undergo rejuvenating pruning. Old branches are shortened, which activates the buds. The period of anti-aging pruning is practically unlimited. It can be produced from January to April, from August to September inclusive.

The branches are pruned 30% from the top after they bloom. For abundant flowering, old branches are removed. It is recommended to rejuvenate shrub plants once every couple of years.

Anti-aging pruning of branches

Sanitary

This type of pruning occurs in the fall and is required for all shrubs. The main purpose of this type of pruning is to protect shrub plants from various infectious diseases, preventing rotting of diseased or damaged areas of the bush. The process of this type of pruning involves removing all damaged or broken branches of the bush.

Important! For good ventilation, the crown is thinned out by cutting off immature branches growing inside the bush.

Formative

This type is used exclusively in the autumn. If for some reason pruning was not carried out in the fall, then when cutting the branches in the spring, their decorative appeal will be spoiled, because flowers grow on the shoots of the previous year. Formative pruning consists of creating ornamental plants from ordinary ones by adding shoots with accelerated growth vigor to the main branches. Weak branches growing from the root are removed.

Certain types of shrubs have fairly rapid growing root shoots, which makes the shrubs significantly increase in width. For this reason, it is recommended to get rid of shoots and most of the root growth around the entire perimeter.

Attention! You should be careful and careful when removing shoots, because... their excessive destruction leads to a deterioration in the condition of the crown of shrubs.

Indications for the use of radical rejuvenation

When shrubby plant no longer able to form strong and weak shoots, gardeners use radical rejuvenation. In this case, all branches are cut off at ground level. This will help activate the buds and shoot growth will appear again. After 1-2 years, you should start pruning weak and poorly growing branches.

Ornamental shrubs

Decorative pruning

IN landscape design Ornamental shrubs (cinquefoil, hibiscus, euonymus, derain) are often used. Beautiful view and lush flowering they decorate gardens, city streets, and parks. This type of plant requires constant and careful care. Pruning is carried out so that the bush maintains its shape, in accordance with the intended design.

Decorative shrubs are pruned in the spring. The branches of young seedlings are shortened by 10-15 cm. Several buds are left, new shoots will grow from them.

The next year after pruning, the bush grows powerful branches. In the fall, it is advisable to carry out sanitary pruning of branches. It is necessary to cut off weak, unhealthy branches at the base of the plant. If in early spring it turns out that the bush needs pruning again, then it can be repeated. However, the pruning procedure must take place before the buds of the bush swell and the sap begins to flow.

Important! Branches can grow quickly only in the first year of their life, then the growth rate decreases, and after 6 years it stops. Therefore, it takes 3-4 years to create a decorative crown of a bush.

The ratio of shoots on a bush-type plant

The branches of shrubs are given 5-6 years to grow; after this period it is advisable to prune them. Therefore, it is important to know what ratio of shoots the shrub has by age. In order to determine the age of the branches, you can use the method of counting the internal rings that are observed in a cross section. The number of rings indicates how old the plant is. Typically, all shrubs have 4-5 one-year branches, two-year-old branches - 3-4, three-year-old, four-year-old and five-year-old branches - 2-3.

It is worth noting! It is necessary to remove shoots not only according to their age, but also according to their physiological state, appearance and direction of growth. Accordingly, the above ratio may change. However, changes in the number of branches and their age do not mean that the bush has an irregular shape.

How to trim a hedge

Hedge trimming

Leave the trim on late dates it is impossible, because the branches of the bush grow upward, which means that over time the lower part of the plant will be exposed, which is not aesthetically attractive. Therefore, the shoots are pruned in the first year, at a level of 15 cm above the ground. After this, strong root layers will begin to appear.

The following year the procedure is repeated, which will create a good crown. If it does not have a uniform density, it will need to be trimmed well again. After this, the growth of the crown will increase, it will come to the required form. After three years, the root growth will be fully formed. Shrub hedges will only require cosmetic pruning.

Shaped pruning of shrubs

To give the garden a special attractiveness, gardeners often began to use curly pruning. It gives the garden an exclusive and beautiful view. Before you start this type pruning, it is important to choose the right plant variety. Most preferable evergreen shrubs, such as boxwood, laurel, cypress, privet, conifers.

It is important to note! Pruning of curly bushes should be done annually. When landscaping the walls of a house, fence, or other buildings with ivy, pruning must be done several times a year. Each body type has certain cutting features.

spherical shape

To create such a figure, select small trees. To give the shrub a spherical shape, it is necessary to cut off the side shoots. You can use a template made of wire. It is placed against a bush, and the excess crown is cut off.

Cone cutting

Cone is one of the most simple figures for trimming. The haircut starts from the crown, from the very top to the bottom. To ensure that the figure is clearly proportional, special poles are used. A pyramid is built from them and the branches that extend beyond the figure are cut off. Barberry and juniper are best suited for a cone shape.

spiral tree

Conical shrubs are best suited for creating a spiral shape. You need to stick a pole near the bush and tie the bush to it. At the top of the pole, tie a ribbon and direct it to the ground, wrapping the plant in a spiral. Next, the shoots are cut to the trunk, according to the shape specified by the tape. When the bush acquires the required spiral shape, the tape is removed.

Spiral shapes

Gardening Tools

Important! For gentle and easy pruning, use special tools. The main tool for removing branches is a pruner.

This tool divided into 2 types:

• With a curved blade. His job is to cut thick shoots evenly;
• With a straight blade. The blade of the tool rests on the end of the plant.

The pruner is very effective in its work, however, the negative point about this tool is that it cuts hard to reach places bush is impossible.

A garden saw is useful when it is necessary to rejuvenate bushes and remove branches more than 5 cm thick. The saw teeth are sharp and large enough (6-7 ml long), which makes it easy to cut down thick branches.

To carry out the work of pruning hard-to-reach shoots, gardeners use a lopper. This tool can easily cope with thick branches and is easy to work with in a lush crown.

To choose good tools who will be effective helpers in the garden, pay attention to the following characteristics of the tool:

• it must be very sharp in order to cut the shoots smoothly;
• safe to use;
• convenient to use;
• the weight of the tool should be light, but capable of withstanding significant effort on the part of the gardener;
• It is advisable to choose a handle painted in bright color so that the tool can be easily found among the grass.

Important! Also, for trimming hedges, it is advisable to purchase garden shears, which cope with this task most effectively. When stripping and removing various problematic shoots, a garden knife will provide significant assistance.

Pruning fruit trees and berry bushes

Fruit bushes are pruned in the spring, before sap flow begins.

Not every berry grower needs annual pruning, because... some of them independently activate the formation of their crown; the berries on them grow on the shoots of the previous year; therefore, if they are cut off, there will be no harvest. Gardeners only need to periodically remove old branches.

Currant pruning

Young fruit trees(apple, pear) form every spring. Since the landing fruit trees gardeners begin to create a crown for uniform insolation. Pruning occurs by removing unnecessary branches and when fruiting begins, the fruits are ripe and the trees are already in the desired shape.

Plant nutrition

Important! After the pruning procedure is completed, the plants begin to urgently need nutrients. To do this, the bushes are fed with a solution that contains nitrogen and potassium.

When getting rid of branches in August and September, plants need phosphorus. This is due to the fact that in given time begins to form root system. Among experienced gardeners It is generally accepted that the most effective and useful feeding is an infusion of compost.

Pruning berry and ornamental shrubs and fruit trees is a mandatory procedure in growing plants. This process must be approached carefully and carefully so as not to damage healthy and young shoots, to create a beautiful and lush crown. Therefore, among gardeners, a book written by Doctor of Agricultural Sciences, R.P. Kudryavets, became very popular and useful in pruning fruit trees and shrubs. It clearly presents all the information regarding the maintenance and care of plants.

With the onset of autumn, life in the garden does not freeze, but begins to slowly fade away, and before the snow falls, gardeners have a lot of work: after harvesting, they need to prepare the plants for wintering and for the beginning of the next growing season, since it is in the fall that the success of next year’s harvest is laid. The easier the garden endures winter, the more grateful it will respond to your care for it. We have already written about how to prepare your garden for winter. In this article we will talk about autumn pruning of fruit bushes on the eve of winter.

Pruning fruit bushes

Berry bushes form the basis of the garden and are a source of vitamins and other useful substances For human body. Growing fruit bushes is not extremely difficult, but it requires time, effort and special knowledge.

One of the most important points of care is the pruning of fruit bushes, which should be carried out at a time determined by the agricultural technology of the species, since proper pruning has a positive effect on the health, lifespan and productivity of the crop, while untimely or incorrectly carried out pruning can cause serious damage to plants, and in some cases cases and irreparable harm. Autumn pruning of the main fruit bushes is carried out almost annually, and it usually begins when the bush enters a dormant period.

Each species fruit bush their own timing - some require pruning in September, others require pruning in October or November, and the methods of this procedure are not for everyone fruit crops are the same, but there are recommendations common to all shrubs:

• autumn pruning is done in areas where there are no severe and long frosts, otherwise the bark at the site of the wound may freeze out with the onset of winter, which can lead to the death of the bush;
• You cannot trim plants at temperatures below -10 ºC, because at such a low temperature the wood becomes too fragile, the cut tissue becomes loose, and the tools severely injure the branches;
• do not rush to prune the shrubs planted this year: it is quite possible that you made a mistake with the planting location and will want to move the bush to another part of the garden in the spring - in the new place you will begin to form the crown of the bush;
• autumn pruning is mostly applied to mature bushes and trees;
• be sure to treat cuts of thick branches (from 8 mm in diameter and more) with garden varnish;
• as pruning tools garden shrubs sharply sharpened tools are used - garden saws and pruning shears. Sometimes you have to work with an axe. A ladder may be needed.

Which shoots to prune depends on how many years a particular type of branch bears fruit. For example, black currant branches bear fruit for 5 years, therefore, branches older than five years must be removed, since they will no longer bear fruit, but will only begin to take away strength and nutrition from younger shoots that are promising in terms of fruiting. There are two methods of pruning: thinning, when the branches are cut off at the very base, and shortening - pruning only the upper part of the shoot. Best time pruning – a period of rest when sap flow has stopped.

Ph.D., Art. scientific co-workers Federal Scientific Center in horticulture named after I.V. Michurina, Scientific Secretary academy of non-traditional and rare plants, member of the All-Russian Society of Genetics and Breeders of the Russian Federation

Trimming flowering bushes– this is one of the necessary and very important parts of caring for them. But you should know that shrubs, blooming in spring, should be pruned strictly after the end of their flowering, only in this way we will allow new shoots to form, and not harm the flowering in the case of pruning shrubs in early spring, even before the buds open.

In early spring, shrubs such as forsythia, three-lobed almond, weigela, mock orange, deutia, many spirea (although there are also summer-flowering species), and viburnum Buldenezh ( Snowball), kerria, as well as lilacs, mahonia holly, rhododendrons and tree peonies. By autumn, all these plants form shoots and lay flower buds on them. If we prune them before flowering, we will remove these buds along with the shoots, and flowering will be significantly weaker or may be absent altogether. Of course, you shouldn't completely ignore these plants in early spring if they need a little help. sanitary pruning, that is, the removal of dry shoots, broken or those that grow deep into the crown, greatly thickening it, and are completely unnecessary for the plant - such shoots must be removed. The main pruning should be carried out exclusively after flowering, and for some breeds it has its own characteristics.

For example, pruning forsythia should begin with thinning the bush, that is, remove all old shoots, cutting them as close to the soil surface as possible. Sometimes you can see that such shoots have many lateral growths closer to the soil surface, in which case it is appropriate to cut off part of the shoot directly above the young growths. All shoots that had flowers on forsythia should be shortened by a third at the end of flowering.

Trilobed almond (Louisiania triloba) is prone to strong thickening, so the bush must be pruned every year. They thicken especially strongly terry varieties. You can start pruning this plant immediately after flowering is finished. From each shoot, only a small part can be left, having two pairs of buds. There is no need to be afraid; young shoots will grow from the axils before the end of the warm season. Ideally, the bush should be formed in such a way that the branches that make it up are not older than five years. Of course, you should also pay attention to shoots that grow deep into the crown - they also need to be removed. Many gardeners give shrubs rounded shape, cutting out all the shoots that stand out from this shape - this is very beautiful. IN autumn time You can carry out another pruning - by removing or simply pinching off parts of the shoots that have not yet become woody. If this is not done, then in winter they will freeze. IN summer time After pruning, it is very advisable to feed the bush with nitrophoska, dissolving 25-35 g of fertilizer in a bucket of water and pouring this volume under the bush. In the fall, you can do another feeding, but this time add potassium monophosphate, 10-15 g for each bush.

Mahonia holly - many people grow it without pruning at all, but this is not true, the bush needs pruning, it will make the bushes as beautiful as possible and not fall apart, and will not allow the base of the bush to be exposed, which is often observed. It is permissible to cut all shoots by 50% or by a third, if they are not very old. Pruning can be carried out immediately after flowering and in the autumn, when only growths that do not have flower buds can be removed.

In May or June, you can observe flowering in the Van Gutta spirea, nippon spirea, oak-leaved spirea, sharp-toothed spirea, middle spirea and sulfur spirea. In these species, flower buds are laid along the entire length of the growth of the previous season. To reduce the volume of the plant and make it compact and neat, it is necessary to shorten the shoots to the youngest branch. This pruning will stimulate abundant growth of young shoots. Old shoots that do not have good growth can be removed completely, then young shoots will form more actively.

Weigela - it is best to prune it at the end of June, before the plant has time to form young shoots. Immediately after flowering, the shoots that bore flowers must be pruned down to the first vertical growths, which are most often located at the base of the bush. Old shoots and those without vertical growth are removed completely. If pruning is too late and the plant has already formed growths, then it is better not to do it at all, because you can easily cut off all the flower buds.

Mock orange is also pruned in the summer, after flowering, cutting out all shoots older than two years. If such pruning is not done, then the lower part of the bush will become very bare and flowers will form in small quantities and only on young growths. All other shoots of mock orange should be shortened by about a third so that branching is activated. It has been noticed that the sooner you prune the mock orange after flowering, the more young growths there will be, which by the fall will have time to become lignified and will be able to survive the winter.

Deutzia - it must be pruned every year at the end of flowering. After pruning or before it, the bushes need to be fed with nitrophoska, adding 15-20 g of this fertilizer dissolved in water for each plant. All shoots that had flowers on the deutia should be shortened to the very first young growth. And if it is not on the shoot, then cut them out at the surface of the soil. If the bush has not been pruned for a long time, it needs to be thinned out as much as possible, leaving only shoots no older than 5 years of age. Old shoots can be removed completely or only parts of them about 20 cm long with lateral branches can be left.

Kerria - at the end of flowering, the shoots of this plant need to be shortened by a third, and branches older than four years should be cut out completely. Such pruning will stimulate the formation of young shoots, on which flowers can form again this fall.

Common viburnum Buldenezh finishes blooming early, usually at the end of May, less often later. Consequently, already at the beginning of June you can start pruning - adjust the shape of the bush, thin it out, removing all the shoots that thicken the crown. Pruning the Buldenezh viburnum should definitely be done before August; if it is done later, the young shoots will not become woody and may freeze out in winter.