Evergreen shrubs and trees usually require little other pruning beyond the removal of dead, diseased, or injured branches unless they are being trained or shaped. That means evergreens can be lightly pruned to enhance their natural form or they can be heavily pruned to an unnatural form—usually to the form of a hedge or topiary….
Deciduous trees require minimal pruning. Pruning begins at planting time and continues with regularity for three years or so. Once the form of a tree has been established with initial early pruning, there will be occasional pruning in the years that follow–mostly maintenance pruning to ensure the health and form of the tree. General guidelines…
Pruning involves trimming out unwanted or unhealthy plant growth to benefit the remaining portions of the plant. Pruning is always secondary to the constant good management of plants. Why prune Pruning can do the following: When to prune The time for pruning varies with the type of plant and the results you want to achieve….
Shrubs are important and nearly permanent characters in the garden and landscape. They bring beauty, comfort, and pleasure to the landscape by adding structure to the garden. Shrubs alone can make a garden. Shrubs offer years of low-maintenance satisfaction. The time and effort spent in shrub care are minuscule compared to the years and even…
A no-dig, no-till garden bed can be made by laying down layer-upon-layer of organic materials that will decompose themselves into a nutrient-rich planting bed for flowers, shrubs, herbs, and vegetables. This no-dig, no-till method has been the basis of Chinese gardening for thousands of years; it is known as sheet composting and more recently has…
There is an art to watering plants: when, where, and how are lessons learned over time. Watering plants requires more understanding of fundamental principles, more judgment, and more skill than any other gardening practice, yet it is perhaps more wrongly done than any other gardening task. First-time gardeners tend to water frequently and lightly. When…
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