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To prune or not to prune
Lulu The Lurcher
Posts: 258
in Talkback
Should I prune/cut back buddlea?
0
Lulu The Lurcher
Posts: 258
Posts
Yes, cut it right down to about your knee height now. Cut each stem back to just above a bud. It looks drastic but it'll be fantastic.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
The harder you cut back buddlea the more it loves it to be honest, they love a brutal prune. I cut some of mine down to almost ground level.
I do the same as Dave, remove some middle branches right out.
Oh YES please please please hack it back.
ours weren't pruned for years by previous owners and then when we first moved in, now we need to hire a chain saw to do the job. Once it's (as Dove says) down to knee high (or ground level even better as Dave says) we will be able to keep on top of it. Once it's hacked you will need to cut back ALL new growth (or more) every autumn and spring then let it go! Ours is 5-6 foot high until we get the chain saw on it!