How to Prune OVERGROWN Shrubs
I waited too late. It should have been done two months ago. Or really, two years ago! But let’s just say… that I CHOSE to do it late so that I could demonstrate to you how to prune OVERGROWN shrubs.
There are two of these huge shrubs, one on each end of the house. They have been there a long time and are way too big and also too close to the house. At some point we will have to pull these out and replace them with something smaller.
If I had made it over to this house to do this job back in late winter, I would have cut these shrubs back to half the size theyare now. But I didn’t. So now, since I hope to get this house rented soon, I want to just make them look more appealing and keep the branches off the walls which have been freshly painted.
In the trio of pictures above: The first one shows the shrub before any work was done. The branches extend 3-5 feet above the house. Picture number 2 shows all but the two tallest branches removed. And the third picture shows the completed pruning job.
BEFORE
AFTER
Tips for Pruning:
- Prune all branches to below the eave of the house.
- Remove all branches that are scraping the side of the house or will be soon.
- Take a few steps back away from the shrub often as you prune to survey your work and see where you need to cut next. You want to keep a fairly symmetrical shape.
- Cut away any branches that are blocking windows.
- And most importantly, do NOT let your shrubs get this overgrown.
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Aha! Finally, a way in which my life resembles yours!
But seriously, good tips for the shrubberies. That’s (I think?) more or less how Husband does it. Now, sometimes they get so overgrown that we can’t get them down to where we’d like ’em without cutting off all the green stuff and effectively killing the shrub, but that’s when we discuss whether we ever really liked it anyway.
Michelle, there are some shrubs that will grow right out of that whack job and be all the prettier for it! But some others, not so much. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
I have to prune my blueberries and currant bushes to keep them small enough to live in pots. I haven’t been very aggressive yet since they are so young, but soon I will have to get them shaped. – Margy
I love blueberries! But my neighbors has lots of bushes so I didn’t plant any. I planted blackberries and I’m hoping we can make a trade when the time comes. 🙂
Needed this. Thanks so much for sharing at the To Grandma’s House We Go DIY, Crafts, Recipes and More Link party! Pinned this! Hope you join us again next week!
Hi Sheri! Thanks for stopping by. Overgrown shrubs… bleh… 🙂
Ahhh thank you for posting this Nikki. Some of our shrubs are turning into little monsters. We always used to get a small garden service to prune our shrubs for us, but sadly the owner passed away and we’ve just let them go.
Hi Michelle. I wish I had a big ole tractor and I’d pull these “monsters” outta there!! Anyway, we do the best we can. xxoo
Looks better than before Gwingal, good job. Don’t be afraid to cut out some thinner branches from the middle as well. This will allow sunlight to come deeper into the shrub and promote growth… Although I’m now wondering if that’s really what you want, haha 😉
LOL You are so correct! I really don’t want these to grow too much, other than to fill in the bare spots that the contractor made a mess of. These are at a rental house and I won’t be there often to keep them pruned. Thats why I really want to pull them out and replace with something smaller. Thanks for commenting Timothy. 🙂