If the green fencing on your property literally grows over your head, it not only takes up a lot of space, it can also be annoying by throwing unwanted shadows. Then a radical pruning is necessary, but this should be done carefully so that the plants sprout again he althily.
When and how should a hedge be radically cut back?
A hedge should be radically pruned in late winter. Cut boldly into the old wood to promote new shoots and leaf mass. Make sure you have a slight trapezoidal shape and don't just shorten at the top to ensure enough light for all shoots.
How hard can you cut?
If the hedge has grown too much and is getting old, a radical treatment will ensure that it grows nice and evenly dense again. For almost all hedge plants, there is no reason to worry that the plants could die as a result of this measure. As a rule, the hedge closes faster than gardeners might expect.
Particularly if the bushes are bare from the inside out, it is worth pruning heavily, as the bushes form many new shoots. After a few months, the enclosure looks almost as if it has been freshly installed. Plants that have become too large can be shortened by around half or even a third.
How to cut?
If you shorten the hedge radically, it will be difficult for a while without visual compromises. The reason: Almost always only the outer, young branches appear juicy green. As soon as you cut off a few centimeters, leaves or needles are missing.
Cut boldly right into the old wood. This stimulates the plant to activate the sleeping eyes. This results in numerous new shoots and a lot of leaf mass.
It is important that you cut back at a time when the old wood has enough reserves for vigorous new growth. You should therefore preferably use hedge trimmers (€88.00 at Amazon) in late winter, shortly before the growing season begins.
Procedure
- Cutting should be done on a frost-free day when the temperature is at least five degrees.
- First prune the crown to the planned height. Here it makes sense to work with a tension line. This will make the top edge nice and straight.
- Then it goes to the sides of the hedge. A light trapezoid shape is ideal, with the shoulder being narrower than the base. Through this cut, all shoots receive sufficient light.
- Alternatively, you can cut the fence at right angles, although this will result in loss of light in the lower part.
- Do not shorten the bushes only at the top, as this pruning only stimulates growth in the upper area. This makes the growth irregular, as hardly any fresh shoots grow down below.
Tip
From March 1st to September 30th, the Federal Nature Conservation Act does not allow heavy hedge trimming. However, you can also carry out superficial repair work, which is almost unavoidable due to radical pruning, during the summer months.
