Hedges: pruning times
Hedges require formative pruning on planting, plus maintenance trimming to keep them within bounds. Pruning times vary depending on the type of hedge.
Quick facts
- Prune new deciduous hedges in winter
- Prune new evergreen hedges in spring
- Prune established hedges annually to keep them looking good
When to prune hedges
Timing of pruning should take into account the potential for nesting birds (see 'Problems' section below). However in general, these are the optimum timings for pruning hedges:
Deciduous hedges
- Formative pruning: In winter, just after planting, and for the first two years after planting
- Maintenance pruning: Each summer
Evergreen hedges
- Formative pruning: In the spring after planting and for the first two years after planting
- Maintenance pruning: Each summer
For advice on pruning techniques, see hedges: trimming.
Trimming guidelines for popular hedging plants
Formal hedges
Evergreen
Buxus sempervirens (box): Twice or three times during growing season
Ilex aquifolium (holly): Once in late summer
Ligustrum (privet): Twice or three times during growing season
Lonicera nitida: Twice or three times in growing season
Prunus laurocerasus: Prune twice during growing season
Conifers
Chamaecyparis lawsoniana (Lawson cypress): Twice, in spring and summer
× Cuprocyparis leylandii (Leyland cypress): Twice or three times in growing season
Taxus baccata (yew): Twice, in summer and autumn
Thuja plicata: In spring and again in early autumn
Deciduous
Carpinus betulus (hornbeam): Once, in mid- to late summer
Crataegus monogyna (hawthorn): Twice, in summer and autumn
Fagus sylvatica (beech): Once, in late summer
Informal and flowering hedges
Evergreen
Berberis darwinii: Immediately after flowering
Cotoneaster lacteus: After fruiting
Escallonia: Immediately after flowering
Lavandula (lavender): Immediately after flowering
Pyracantha: Late summer
Deciduous
Berberis thunbergii: Immediately after flowering
Forsythia: After flowering, remove some older stems
Fuchsia magellanica: In spring, remove old stems
Rosa rugosa: In spring, remove thin twigs
Problems
When undertaking work on garden hedges check that there are no birds nesting, as it is an offence under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 to damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while it is in use or being built. The bird nesting season is usually considered to run from March to August.
With conifer hedges, trimming after August can encourage bare patches so cut earlier in the season but only after checking for nesting birds.
Get involved
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