This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.
sorbaria sem pruning
Hi, quick one for you more knowledgable folks. i have a sorbaria sem that has thrown up 3 root suckers, and has a lot of new spring growth come through already.
is it too late to prune this now the growth has begun? also generally speaking, if there is new growth on deciduous shrubs/trees is it still OK to prune them or is it too late at that stage once growth has started.
thanks 
0
Posts
I think you can hack those back as hard as you like djjjuk. Growth will be early with a lot of plantsbut it's still early in the season
In the sticks near Peterborough
Some trees, such as birch, will bleed copiously if pruned during the active growth period in spring.
Your sorbaria is a plant known for suckering and spreading when it's happy. You can dig those up and pot them on or replant elsewhere. I wouldn't prune the top growth back apart from taking out any obvious dead twiggy bits. It doesn't get very tall and looks best when left to show off its lovely spring foliage followed by the frothy flower heads.
Three weeks ago I dug up 7 "babies" from one of these that I've had to leave to its own devices for 2 years because of various surgeries. I have replanted them along part of my road edge border to make a bit of a hedge and they're already looking really good. In future, I shall force my spade in vertically around their roots about a foot from the main stems in order to sever any roots heading off to make new plants.