We expect a hedge to be compact and dense to carry out its role of delimitation, concealment, windbreak... Even if we will tend to let these shrubs grow and grow so that as quickly as possible, the hedge fulfills its role, it is however important to cut it for an optimal result. A pruning one year after planting will flesh out its base, and a few prunings during the year will balance its habit and densify its foliage, until it has reached its final height.
Equip
- A shear : for small trimmed hedges and for topiaries ( Purchasing guide on shears ), for fine twigs.
- A lopper : for landscape and country hedges, for all large branches.
- A hedge trimmer : for a long hedge ( Hedge trimmer buying guide )
- A double A-frame ladder or scaffolding : for the tallest hedges. Ensures safety and ergonomics. Avoids you to work at arm's length but at a good height. Makes work less tiring.
- Gloves : to avoid injury.
training size
It stimulates the branching of the branches from the base of the shrub and gives a balanced and regular habit to the whole.
It takes place one year after planting, at the end of winter, once all risk of frost has passed.
Prune deciduous shrubs with fewer than 4 branches to 20 cm from the ground.
Prune evergreen shrubs to half the length of the twigs.
Some vigorous shrubs, such as Pyracantha, Cotoneasters, Photinia, Privets, may be cut back more severely as their base tends to become bare. Cut them back to a third of their height between November and March.
The shrub will then take three years to grow. Thereafter, slow down its growth in height by pruning it regularly.
In the case of a windbreak hedge, cut the side branches and remove the forks. Thus, the sap will primarily feed the trunk, which must be solid to fulfill its role.
maintenance pruning
It always takes place at the end of winter, when severe frosts are no longer to be feared. It remains light: prune the new branches in half. Repeat the operation every year until the hedge has reached the desired height.
The size of a regular hedge
The regular hedge must be trimmed 3 times a year : the second half of May, end of July and end of September. This number obviously varies depending on the type of shrub planted and its growth rate.
It's up to you to decide what shape you want to give it: a perfect rectangle, with a straight or rounded top, or a trapezium with a base wider than the top. Help yourself when cutting with a template and a chalk line that will guide you as you progress.
The size of a free hedge
The free hedge is made up of different shrubs, with different growth rates. Less strict than the regular hedge, the free hedge is cut less often. Moreover, this pruning is only intended to maintain a certain harmony in the habit of the shrubs (control the most vigorous shrubs in the hedge, favor slow-growing species ). Interestingly flowering shrubs should be pruned just after their flowers have faded, in late spring. The other shrubs will be pruned at the end of winter, the pruning will stimulate new shoots which will give flowers, leaves and decorative branches the following year.
Steps in trimming a free hedge
- Cut off all dead branches at the lowest point.
- Remove the oldest branches, recognizable by their gray bark.
- Cut off the most spindly branches, those that show signs of disease, and those that unbalance the natural habit of the tree.
- Regularly judge the effect by taking a step back.