When pruning hedges, a distinction is made between shape cuts and maintenance cuts. We'll explain what to look out for.
For some, the hedge is the green band along their own property, for others it may be an indispensable privacy screen from prying eyes. Well, be that as it may, hedge trimming is given high priority. After all, the garden hedge should grow nice and green and dense and stay in shape.
We would like to inform you on this page about how and when you can best trim your hedge.
Maintenance and topiary
Hedge trimming fulfills two essential aspects. On the one hand, dried out and dead shoots should be removed and the new shoots encouraged quickly. On the other hand, the hedge should definitely show off its aesthetic shape. Both maintenance and topiary are done at different times.
» Reading tip: Hedge trimming: What is allowed and when?
Maintenance pruning in spring
- Prune your hedge in early spring to encourage rapid and dense budding of your leafy enclosure.
- By this point, temperatures should be well above freezing.
- Prune your hedges on days when the weather tends to be overcast. Be sure to avoid direct sunlight.
Tip: There is no danger of disturbing wintering animals or breeding birds. However, before cutting, inspect the bushes for animals.
Topiary in June/July
In the past few weeks after the maintenance cut, the new shoots have developed and spread vigorously. At the end of June/beginning of July, the hedge largely stops growing. Since the spring pruning, the shoots have developed at different rates and the hedge has visibly lost its shape. Now the topiary should fix it.
- The topiary is essential. It has a long-lasting effect on the silhouette.
- This cut should be done by the end of August at the latest, otherwise the new shoots will not mature until the first frost.
- Should you still make this appointmentdawdled, wait until the end of October/beginning of November. The hedge is now dormant. If it's not freezing yet, you can catch up on the topiary without any problems.
Tip: The perfect hedge is cut in a trapezoidal shape. That is: its base is kept wider while it is tapered towards the top. In this way, the sunlight also reaches the lower parts of the hedge.
Hedges of early flowering shrubs
The number of hedges of early flowering shrubs is not insignificant. They are only cut back when their blooms are over. The flowering shrubs already planted their buds in the previous year. However, if you do prune those hedges in early spring, you are robbing yourself of bloom because the buds that were about to open fall victim to the pruning.
For example, which flowering rear shrubs are included?
- Forsythia
- Ornamental Currant
- Hawthorn
- Hawthorn
- Scented jasmine and others
Conclusion:
You have to cut your hedge at least twice a year for a tight privacy screen. In this way, the shoots of the hedge are strengthened from the inside. Cut your hedge in a trapezoidal shape in summer so that you can get sunlight down to the lower parts of the plant. Early flowering hedge shrubs occupy a special position. Spring pruning is done for these only after flowering.