The shrubs to prune now

Ruth cuts back a forsythia and potted hydrangea

- Ruth Hayes

THERE is always some pruning to be done and at this time of year it’s the turn of trees and shrubs that flower in late winter.

Making sure you prune your forsythia, Kerria, flowering currant and other early spring-flowering shrubs at the right time is important because if you get it wrong you will remove early-year colour.

Unlike most deciduous trees and shrubs that are pruned between autumn and spring once their leaves have dropped, these shrubs are cut back as soon as its blossom fades.

If you leave it until later in the year, or early the next before its buds start to swell, you will remove the mature wood that holds the flowers.

We have a large forsythia in the garden and I don’t prune ours every year because I quite like the wild beauty created by its longer branches.