How, When and Why to Prune

How, When and Why to Prune

By H.B.

         In the Sagan Satellite Garden there are many shrubs that may need pruning at one time or another.  These currently include; sage, rosemary, thyme, catnip, and lemongrass.  Below is a table showing when each of these shrubs should be pruned.

Name of Plant	Time of Year to be Pruned
Sage	Winter, when it is dormant
Rosemary	Any time of the year, it never goes fully dormant
Thyme	After it has bloomed in the summer
Catnip	Summer, after its first flowering
Lemongrass	Late winter

            

         There are basic ways of pruning that can be applied to any of the fore mentioned shrubs.  To start off, use hand pruners (for better control of what is getting trimmed off) to remove any damaged, dead or diseased stems, as well as any extremely thick or woody stems that are not the trunk of the shrub. Diseased or dead stems can usually be spotted easily because they turn a different color and/or texture than the rest of the stems on the plant. Woody or thick stems will create an undesirable shape and can also create especially unappetizing herbs. Also be sure to remove vigorous, upright growing, shoots that come from the trunk or side branches, as well as shoots that develop or start underground near the shrub.

          After basic pruning of the shrub has been done, shaping is optional. To shape a shrub, hand pruners are the suggested tool to use as opposed to large shears, in order to have more control over the shaping of the shrub.  First, cut off any excessively long branches. Do this by clipping them to a similar length as the main mass of foliage, but do not cut each branch to exactly the same length. Next reach within the tangle of the main mass of foliage and remove any particularly large or twiggy branches, make sure to clip these at the point where they join a main branch. Now give the shrub a final once over to ensure it is shaped in a neat fashion, make sure not to be excessive about how much you trim back at any point in the process.

            There is a variety of reasons to pruning shrubs and it can have many different advantages, especially when it comes to a plants health. It can help the plant fight off disease and even generate higher quality herbs if applicable. Also keep in mind that pruning has advantages for you too, it prevents the shrub from growing too big and gradually taking over an entire garden or worse killing off other plants in the garden.  At the Avanti Sagan Satellite Garden, we have the shrubs mentioned previously as well as many others all around the garden that are pruned and shaped by students. Anyone is welcome to come check out these and many other awesome plants at the garden!

References

Better Homes and Gardens (n.d.). Shape Your Shrubs. Retrieved from http://www.bhg.com/gardening/trees-shrubs-vines/care/shape-your-shrubs/

Better Homes and Gardens (n.d.). What to Prune When. Retrieved from http://www.bhg.com/gardening/trees-shrubs-vines/care/what-to-prune-when/