Deck the halls with loads of branches! It’s pruning time again.
Actually, you can prune many different sorts of plants at many times of the year. What we’re talking about is winter pruning. Winter time is a quiet time for plants. Many deciduous plants have already lost their leaves and have gone dormant. This means that they are no longer actively growing and making food. Winter pruning means that you prune trees and shrubs while they are dormant.
If you prune deciduous trees and shrubs in the winter, this will help them grow more in the spring. Winter pruning reduces the number of buds on a plant and helps other buds grow more vigorously. You can also prune evergreen trees and shrubs during this time, even though they keep their leaves all year long. Removing branches from an evergreen removes equal numbers of buds and leaves, so it does not impact the survival or growth of the tree. If you’re like to prune and have your pruned evergreen look good, hold off pruning until January to March, just before the new growth comes to the tree. Then the new growth will cover up some of the pruning cuts that you’ve made.
In November and December, you should be pruning perennials and shrubs that die back over the winter. After Christmas and before the spring flush of growth begins, you can prune young trees and shrubs and summer blooming shrubs.
Winter pruning is also useful because it occurs during a time when birds are not nesting in trees and shrubs. If you have a lot of birds that love to use your garden as a breeding site, then you’ll want to make sure that they’re safe and happy. Swiping a pruner across their nest in the spring will not make them safe and happy, so it’s a lot better to prune in the winter time.
Image Credit: Sande2