10 Plants You Should NEVER Prune in the Fall! (Otherwise, They'll Never Bloom Again), by Walt Hollis on YouTube. 18 min 41 s.
- Video length
- 18 min 41 s
- Time to do it
- 20 minutes
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 10
What you need
Steps
Check each plant before you cut anything. If it flowers in spring or early summer, its buds are likely already set on the branches, so leave it alone this fall.
Leave bigleaf hydrangea alone in fall. Its flower buds sit on old wood, so a fall cut removes next year's blooms. Prune right after it flowers instead.
Do not cut ornamental grasses back in autumn. Leave the stems and seed heads standing through winter and cut them down in late winter or early spring.
Skip rhododendron and azalea in fall. Prune them within a few weeks after they finish blooming, not before winter.
Leave lilac branches alone until right after its spring flowers fade. Cutting in fall removes the buds that would open next year.
Hold off on forsythia, weigela, flowering quince and spirea. Prune them just after bloom, since they flower on wood grown the previous year.
Avoid cutting flowering cherries, plums and other Prunus in wet fall weather. A cut made then invites a bark disease, so wait for dry weather in spring or summer.
Leave butterfly bush and Russian sage standing in fall. Cut them back in spring once new growth starts, not before winter.
Keep seed heads on perennials like coneflower and sedum through winter. They feed birds and protect the crown, so cut them in spring.
Do not prune roses in fall. Wait until late winter or early spring, and on lavender only trim lightly after flowering, never into old bare wood.
Tips and common mistakes
Prune based on when a plant blooms and your frost dates, not on a fixed month.
Clean and sharpen your pruners before and after use to avoid spreading disease.
On lavender, never cut into the old woody stems, because those spots do not regrow.
When in doubt, check with your local cooperative extension office for your zone.
Questions
Can I tidy up my shrubs at all in fall?
Yes. Remove dead, damaged or crossing branches, but leave the healthy flowering stems in place until the right season.
When should I prune my bigleaf hydrangea?
Right after it finishes flowering in summer. Pruning then gives it time to set new buds before winter.
Why not cut my cherry tree in fall?
Wet fall weather lets bark disease enter through fresh cuts. Prune in dry weather in spring or summer instead.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
