Richard Jauron.

Dormant pruning is usually done in late winter, six to 10 weeks before the average last frost in your area. You can prune shrubs at any time of year if it’s necessary- for example, to remove broken branches or dead or diseased wood, or to remove growth that is obstructing a walkway.

I used to be afraid of trimming my bushes too.

Oct 05, Badly overgrown shrubs respond well to pruning in late winter/early spring, just before new leaves appear. Managing large shrubs isn’t done overnight. Instead, prune neglected, overgrown shrubs over three years.

Each year, take out a third of the heaviest stems to Estimated Reading Time: 2 mins. The bare minimum plan for pruning is twice a year, but for most properties, this really isn’t enough to help keep your shrubs looking their best. You probably already know just how fast shrubs grow and start to look messy. If you wait too long, your shrubs will start to become an eyesore.

Aug 05, For most shrubs, late winter or early spring is the best time to prune. The plants are still in full dormancy at this time but are just preparing to produce new growth. If your shrub is a spring-blooming variety, though, make sure to leave behind enough flower buds on the stems for a spring show.

This results in either cutting off the flower buds for the season - hence no flowers for a year; cutting off the stems in autumn which would normally give us a great display through the winter; or even pruning some types of shrubs/trees at the wrong time of year, which then allows fungal spores to enter!

Jul 09, The great thing about these shrubs is that they tell you where to cut. The new growth that will bloom next year starts to grow early, so those shoots are the ones to keep and encourage. You do not have to cut out all of the flowered shoots, just look at the plant and remove the oldest and any which are not enhancing the shape of the shrub.

Nov 11, To avoid removing the buds that will flower the following year, prune these early-flowering shrubs as soon as flowers fade, which may rooting redbud tree cuttings in early summer. Pruning in the mid- to late-summer.