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How to prevent shrubs from becoming woody

andyste1andyste1 Posts: 8
in Plants
I have a berberis in the front garden that was encroaching on the pavement by a foot or more, so needed trimming back. After finding that the hedge trimmers were struggling, I realised it is little more than an outer "shell" of foliage about six inches deep, on fairly woody stems. Having removed this (with secateurs) I'm now left with a bunch of gnarled branches 1-3 inches thick!

I've now decided to remove it altogether and replace with something else (I'm thinking photinia red robin), but my concern is that whatever I choose will also become woody over time. I've had similar issues with shrubs in the back garden, which end up being a thin shell of foliage that can't be trimmed for fear of revealing the empty space beneath! 
I don't know if it's down to the type of shrub, or my (lack of) trimming technique. How do you keep a shrub/hedge trimmed back to a certain line while keeping it looking "full"?

Regarding replacing the berberis, the space to fill is about 8ft long and the hedge needs to be a maximum of 4ft high, and evergreen, so recommendations are welcome! 

Posts

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445
    Shrubs are woody, it's their nature. Rather than trimming back to a line you can remove some branches right back to base to keep it in check. If a shrub cant take trimming it's not really a hedging plant


    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • GardenerSuzeGardenerSuze Posts: 5,692
    edited September 2022
    @andyste1 Correct pruning can make a huge difference to your garden. Some non gardeners go for the lollipop effect just cutting back the top growth and if done at the wrong time the flowers too.
    As @nutcutlet has explained it is best to go in at the bottom of a shrub after flowering and thin it out you are looking to remove some of the old stems and goggles are a good idea.
    This doesn't apply to all shrubs and it is best to check out the pruning of each. Your Berberis is tough and will take another level of pruning. It will survive it's drastic hair cut!

    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    As @nutcutlet says - shrubs are woody. That's their growing habit @andyste1   :)
    Taking some stems out completely every so often is the best way to get most shrubs looking good, and means they get rejuvenated over a period of years. That's possibly what you need to do with the shrubs in your back garden.   :)
    If it's a hedge though, it's best to pick something suitable and keep it trimmed correctly from the start.
    There are lots of plants which are perfect for hedging, including most Berberis. It's simply a question of trimming regularly once it's at the size you want rather than letting it get too big and needing a hard prune.
    Some Berberis aren't evergreen anyway, but perhaps you would be better having something which can be kept tighter if there isn't a lot of room. You mentioned height and length, but not the depth/width you have. What room is there for outward growth of the hedge?   
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • GardenerSuzeGardenerSuze Posts: 5,692
    @andyste1 The Berberis will have taken alot of goodness from your soil so you will need to improve it before you plant anything else. There is a Photinia called P Little Robin not sure it will be tall enough? Just to add Photinias can get winter leaf spot in wet cold soils.
    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • andyste1andyste1 Posts: 8
    Fairygirl said:
    As @nutcutlet says - shrubs are woody. That's their growing habit @andyste1   :)
    Taking some stems out completely every so often is the best way to get most shrubs looking good, and means they get rejuvenated over a period of years. That's possibly what you need to do with the shrubs in your back garden.   :)
    If it's a hedge though, it's best to pick something suitable and keep it trimmed correctly from the start.
    There are lots of plants which are perfect for hedging, including most Berberis. It's simply a question of trimming regularly once it's at the size you want rather than letting it get too big and needing a hard prune.
    Some Berberis aren't evergreen anyway, but perhaps you would be better having something which can be kept tighter if there isn't a lot of room. You mentioned height and length, but not the depth/width you have. What room is there for outward growth of the hedge?   
    We've decided to fill the space with a few small shrubs rather than another hedge. We have Nandina and Mahonia elsewhere that have done well and are just a nice size, so we'll probably go with something similar here. 
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