Normally the landscaping around a house has a few shrubs and other vegetation with woody divisions, and over the years these limbs may develop long and look unkempt. To ensure a neat appearance around your lawn and keep shrubbery healthy, it’s a good idea to prune back branches and gently cut some stems to provide more air flow. This is an easy process, but does require a bit of time.
Snip thin branches from trees using protracted pruning snips. Utilize the cut 1 inch in front of a leaf node or just above where a different stem branches away. Prune trees in the fall when the tree is moving dormant and there is minimal energy moving toward growth. If trimming for pruning purposes, do not take off more than one-third of the length of a division.
Cut back thicker branches using a pruning saw or bow saw. Slice into the division from the bottom first, cutting halfway through the division, and then repeat from above the division. By cutting the bottom to begin with, you prevent the division from tearing. Cut divisions back no more than one-third if you’re pruning, but if you need to remove a broken limb due to weather or disease, cut back to 2 inches in the back. Never cut flush with the bark.
Trim limbs off the ground using a rod saw, which may stretch upwards and find a few of the difficult to reach branches. Make your cuts in an identical fashion, but since it’s higher, you can’t get the saw at the appropriate angle for precise top and bottom cuts. Instead make the bottom cut slightly to one side, then do the very best cut above the division and marginally on the opposing side. Keep an eye on the division as you near completion of the cut, and get out of the means of falling branches.
Trim nonflowering in addition to summer and fall flowering shrubs in late fall, when cooler weather prevents new growth. Shape the shrub as you wish by clipping back stems to just above a leaf node. With shrubs this is easy, since there are so many leaves on a single limb. Snip at a small angle on the stem to encourage regrowth. Be conscious of the angle, since stems often develop from this cut in the direction of this angle. Prune spring flowering shrubs in the exact same fashion as other shrubs, but make your cuts shortly after the flowers fall off the stalks. Should you wait till fall, the shrubs will have fresh buds being ready for bloom in the spring. By trimming at that moment, your shrub may not have any blooms another year.
Select limbs around the shrub at even intervals, and trim them further back to the bush. Do not cut them back over one-third the length of the limb. By cutting a few limbs back further, you open more of these inner parts of the shrub to light and air circulation, encouraging green growth further in.