Conifers

Posts

• Kitty 2 Posts: 5,150

  October 2018

  What type of conifers, and how hard do you want to prune them? 
  Some will not regrow if you cut back into old wood.
  You'd be left with an ugly brown mess.
  Photos of the plants would be helpful 😊.

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• res Posts: 61

  October 2018

  Want to square-off and create arch for gate - also to fill-out!
  

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• Kitty 2 Posts: 5,150

  October 2018 edited October 2018

  The photo's not clear enough for an ID, but can see that you will have to cut back around the entrance to keep the gate clear.
  For the rest of the hedge I'd play it safe and only trim lightly into the green, just in case 😉.
  
  Advice from the RHS in the link below says spring to late summer is the best time for pruning.
  
  https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=545
  
  

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• Fairygirl Posts: 55,117

  October 2018

  Yes - as Kitty says, if you cut back too far with most conifers, you'll be left with brown wood which won't regrow. The pic isn't good enough to be precise about advice though.
  
  If you're making a timber arch of some kind to frame the gate, it might not be so bad, as the arch itself will cover some of it. Making a real feature of the arch  would be a good idea.
  If conifers have been planted for a while and not kept trimmed correctly, it makes it hard for them to fill out well, depending on the type of course. Once they get bigger [which they look in your photo] it's really too late. 
  If they're Leylandii, you really have to accept that they have to be quite substantial in depth, as they don't really appreciate being kept in a 'tight' shape like some others. They're too open and  loose in their habit, and need careful pruning right from the start to make them look good. 

  It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
  
  
  
  I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...

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