pruning overgrown bushes

15 years ago

ok, have what could be Philadelphus and spireae bushes that are huge and leggy. one over 7 feet tall. for first 6 feet of them they all bare stems with little twigs of leaves at end. just a huge mass of woody growth that looks terrible. they end up being top heavy and fall over when i try and do some dead wood pruning and just seems to start a domino effect. i think that as tall as they are, just cutting out some of the stems would make the whole thing splay out and collapse. would these be safe candidates for cutting down to the ground for renewal? after flowering or in winter?

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Comments (4)

lindac
15 years ago
The best way to renew a shrub is to cut 1/3 of the branches, the biggest and the longest, down to the ground....do that 3 years in a row and you will have a 3 year old plant....then continut to do that and your shrub will never get tall and leggy again.
Linda C
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
15 years ago
gaoyuqing, both of those shrubs are good candidates for rejuvenation pruning. Be sure to cut them back to 6-12 inch stumps, and I would not fertilize for the first year afterwards.

In subsequent years, do some careful selective pruning to keep the shrubs in good shape.
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duluthinbloomz4
15 years ago
To augment the above...

Mock orange can be pruned immediately after flowering by cutting back the outer stems that have flowered. Each cut should be made just above a strong, outer facing bud or new shoot. Next years blooms will appear from these buds.

As for spirea: those that bloom early in the spring such as Bridalwreath and Snowmound should be pruned right after they flower because they bloom on old wood. Spireas can become woody and unproductive as they age. In old established plants, the oldest stems can be cut out at the base of the plant to encourage new growth.

Summer-blooming varieties such as all of the Spirea Japonica and S. bumalda can be pruned in early spring. They bloom on new growth. To keep them full, summer-blooming varieties are often pruned back hard, removing 1/2 or more of their growth.

You can cut off the faded flowers of summer-blooming varieties, too,if you find them unsightly.
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
15 years ago
I should have been a politician . . . ;o) First, I would have followed Dori's (Rhizo) directions & forget about a beautiful floral display this year - small sacrifice for the rejuvenation her suggestion will bring. I would allow maybe a dozen stems to grow from the stumps. Then, in subsequent years, I would follow Linda's advice & prune out 1/3 of them each year. This keeps the shrub young (ontogenetically - not chronologically) and growing with youthful vitality. Finally, for finer pruning points, it would be good to heed the advice of DiB.

On second thought . . . . . . I'd never have made it as a politician.

Al