If you have these plants in your yard, pruning them in July is a good idea, whether to encourage more blooms, keep them in ...

Pruning shrubs and perennials in May can reward you with neater plants and tremendous future flowering displays. There is a lot to do in the garden this month, but do not overlook pruning when putting ...

Pruning spring-flowering shrubs too late risks a lack of blooms the following spring and pruning them too early in the year means removing the buds that will carry the year's display.

It ranges from spring-flowering shrubs, which may need attention to stay in the best shape for next year’s blooming, to summer-flowering herbaceous perennials, which can benefit from a spring chop.

Since this species flowers in late winter and early spring, it is a good candidate for March pruning. Simply wait for the last of the blooms to die off and then step in with your shears.

These shrubs set their flower buds in summer so pruning at other times of the year reduces or eliminates the spring floral display. Major pruning on these shrubs can also be done in late winter.

Lilacs: Prune in the late spring or early summer, immediately after they’re done blooming. Don’t wait too long: Next year’s buds form right after this year’s flowers have faded.

Last chance to prune spring flowering shrubs and perennials If you wait and prune these spring bloomers in the fall or winter, you will cut off all of next year’s flower buds. by Steve Smith ...

Prune spring-flowering shrubs shortly after they finish flowering. Prune most plants that flower in June or later any time, including the winter dormant season. Hydrangeas are a tricky exception.

Spring bloomers like forsythia should be cut back hard as soon as they have bloomed in the very early spring. Lack of pruning results in tall, scraggly looking shrubs with sparse bloom.

Pruning flowering shrubs at this time will reduce or eliminate blossoming in spring of that year, but the trade-off is in gaining healthier, more vigorous flowering shrubs in the long run.

Spring-flowering species such as forsythia and lilacs already have their flower buds in winter, so pruning them now will remove some potential blooms. “It doesn’t hurt the shrub, but it does ...