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How Far to Cut These Bushes Back?
Paul165
Posts: 97
I recently joined this forum and received some excellent advice on reviving my ailing lawn. I've made some decent progress but there's a long way to go on that front!
In the meantime, some of the bushes are overgrown and there's no line where the lawn ends and the soil begins. The shrubs overgrow onto the lawn and I think I need to:
1. Prune them back; and
2. Create an edge for the lawn
I've attached a few photos below. I would really appreciate any advice on going about this.
How badly do you think they are overgrown?
Should I prune around the bottom?
How ,much is too much?!
I don't really want to be left with a bare looking garden but I think some action is required!
Thanks guys
0
Posts
Hi Paul. Wait until flowering is finished but basically you can prune as hard back as you like with your range of shrubs. Depending how radical you are they may look bare for a little while.
Since the shrubs look a lot healthier than the lawn I'd just cut a new edge to the lawn to give them more space and leave the shrubs alone. You'll be left with some bare soil which you can improve with a generous helping of well rotted garden compost or bought in compost and then plant some annual or perennial plants to give more colour and form to the beds.
Next autumn mulch under your shrubs with well rotted compost anyway and if you do cut a new edge to increase the size of the beds, plant some bulbs to flower in spring.
I agree with obelixx his advice is good if you prune your shrubs hard to bring them in line
they may look untidy for ages..They never look quite as good again.
I'm female but the advice is till good and I do agree that hacking shrubs can make them look unsightly if not done well. As ever, the RHS has some easy to follow advice form drastic renovation pruning to gentle restorative pruning. Have a read of this;-
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=194
All the shrubs look to be leaning away from the fence towards the light so the grass near them will always be shaded and grow less well. I'm with Obelixx on this one too, though you might be able to remove one or two of the lowest, longest branches without spoiling the appearance too much.
The shrub overgrowing the bench looks like cotoneaster horizontalis and it is very hard to prune this back and keep it looking good. It is a splendid shrub and great for birds and bees but it might need more space than it has there. If you deepen the border you can move the bench foward for now, while considering a possible placement.
I'm with Obelixx her advice is spot on, some shrubs like the spirea can be cut hard back in March, if you must prune try to soft prune that is to keep as much of the natural shape of the shrub but still removing a fair bit, not wall it up with shears to keep it off the lawn.
never mind the lawn, make a decent sized border
In the sticks near Peterborough
I'd agree with most of what's been said - the majority of the shrubs you have are ones which are happy in shade (Pieris, Skimmia, Berberis) which is why the grass isn't happy.
If you want grass rather than the shrubs, you'd have to remove them to give the grass a better chance, but it won't do terribly well if it doesn't have enough light. You'll always be fighting nature I'm afraid.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...