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Step 1
Prune your shrub very lightly for the first two years of its life, if you have a flowering shrub. Heavy pruning of young flowering shrubs decreases the numbers of flowers. Thin out the shrub by cutting back to the ground any older branches. This should be done once a year, preferably in the fall.
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Step 2
Shear a young ornamental shrub only if you want to shape it to an unnatural form. Pruning ornamental shrubs to form the shape you desire when they are young, helps them towards future growth in your desired form.
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Step 3
Shape your ornamental shrub into a tree for an exciting focal point in your yard by starting when it is young. Choose a shrub that grows to a full height of at least 6 to 8 feet tall for this type of pruning. Remove the bottom layer of branches on the trunk when the shrub is 8 inches tall. Continue removing bottom layers as the shrub grows to develop a tall tree trunk. Shear the remaining top of the shrub when it is grown to form the desired shape for the top of your tree.
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Step 4
Start pruning deciduous shrubs when they hit three years of age. Deciduous shrubs do not require pruning when they are young. If your deciduous shrub does not produce spring flowers, prune it in the Winter. If it is a spring flowering shrub, wait until after it blooms to prune it.
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Step 5
Head back evergreen shrubs whenever you feel they need them. Some evergreen shrubs do not require pruning when they are young. If they do, they need lighting heading back. Use hand pruners to remove a portion of a branch but cutting it off at a bud or at another branch. Control the direction of the new growth by picking a bud that is growing in the desired direction of growth. This creates a more dense shrub.
