How to Prune Hedges

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

Rate: (4 Ratings)

Plant a hedge to mark boundaries, form a barrier, create a background or define a planting bed. All hedges will look best if kept trimmed and in good health.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

  • Bamboo Garden Stakes
  • Garden Stakes
  • Hedge Shears
  • String
  • Electric Hedge Shears

Step1
Begin trimming hedges when they're first planted. Young plants respond well to shaping and training.
Step2
Cut a few inches off the top of a hedge plant as soon as it has been planted. This will help form bushy plants.
Step3
Use a string guide to keep your hedges even. Place a bamboo stake at either end of the hedgerow. String a line between the two stakes at the desired height of the finished hedge. Use hedge trimmers and follow the string line.
Step4
Shape the hedge so that it's wider at the bottom. Sunlight will reach all the leaves if the hedge is pruned this way. Taper the plants in as you near the top.
Step5
Trim during the active growing season. You may have to trim more than once, but you'll avoid making mistakes that can't be rectified.
Step6
Trim lightly at the end of the growing season to keep hedges looking good throughout the winter months.

Tips & Warnings

  • The ideal hedge plant has scaffolding branches that start at the ground. Boxwood, holly, juniper and privet are all excellent choices for hedging.
  • Evergreen hedges such as juniper and cypress should never be trimmed below the foliage or they won't grow back. Clip only a few inches from the previous year's growth.

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eHow Article:  How to Prune Hedges

eHow Home & Garden Editor

eHow Home & Garden Editor

Category: Home & Garden

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