I'm doing a hard pruning now (not the right time of year but mine has outgrown the space). It really looks bare, but I think it'll be OK. Thanks for posting this. You gave some good pointers.
Sometimes we gotta do what we gotta do, right? It should be fine after a while. It may cause initial shock to the shrub and May not get any additional growth for this growing season, but there isn’t a reason it won’t bounce back especially in the spring. They are very hearty. Thank you for the kind words and for watching! Feel free to subscribe if you’d like.
Oh my!!! My box woods are round and I prune them back every year BUT they need a bit of a hard pruning. It seems scary to prune back so far but I’ll give it a try. I live up north so I’ll have to wait until April or May. Will let you know how I make out. Wish me luck👍.
I wish you the best!! Yes it is scary but they are incredibly hardy and they will make it out better after the hard prune. Just pay special attention to the timing and the weather.
Thanks for watching and the question. Should it be done in late spring? No. Can it? Yes. The textbook answer is no because it’s not the healthiest time to do so. I say ultimately yes it can be done because the boxwood shrub is incredibly resilient. Worst case scenario it will look bad for the rest of the year but coming early spring next year it will bounce back just fine. My overall best recommendation is to not hard prune now. Prune it back a good bit now but not the allowed 1/3 for the hard prune. Hope this helps!
Thank you so much for taking the time to show others. Needed to see how to do pruning when it would be so hard that it was a lot of wood with little green. Encouraging to know that it is ok to prune that hard and I wasn't ruining shrub.
Aaron Parsley hey there! Sure thing. I made and posted this video 6 months ago so I’ll post an update video for you. Subscribe so you can get the notification when I upload it!
I Plan to do a hard prune on two boxwoods. 1/3 top-down (only) - no sides. Just want to get the height under control. It is end of May and early June - WILL I END UP KILLING IT OR WILL IT JUST LOOK A LITTLE UGLY? Thanks!
Thanks for the question @M. Tanner! I’m honestly not sure if you will kill it, but there’s definitely some risk involved doing a hard prune this late. It very well could put the plant in shock. I wouldn’t recommend that. I would only do a normal pruning and then wait until the winter for the hard prune to take the control back of the height. Hope this helps!
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975 I'm tempted to try it on one of them and see what happens - if they died I would not be terribly upset. Thanks for the response - I really appreciate your time! ----- On a side note: do you have advice or a video on how to vet a "handy-man"?
@@M.Tanner if you don’t care that much if it were to die, I say go for it. I’d love an update if you remembered lol. That’s a very good but important question. Well, there are several factors you can look at such as if they are licensed, how many years of experience they have, what their reviews are like from the community, looking at past projects if they have a sort of photo album or portfolio. Those are some of the ideas I had.
Great video with before/after video. Curious what kind of Boxwood that is. Mine are much lighter and floppy looking. I would love to do a hard prune as they're much too big.
Thank you! I know I killed some of my mother's hedge last year. I didn't cut a third of it, but it's been there since I was a kid so it's at least 50 years old.
Tier is the word and yea if you survive the wrath of wife, tier or pylon shape . Ill explain. Dont cut the sides straight up cut them at a steep angle goind smaller to the top. That way more light will get to the bottom branches. Later in the growing season you can square them up. This way you will have thicker greenery at the base. Notice how most shrubs are a bit sparce at the bottom and sometimes full of holes at the bottom. So when you are hard pruning your shrubs in the fall or winter be sure to make them substancially smaller at the top.
jewelbell5 not at all. You can trim back as little as you need to. It’s just important to remember to not prune back more than a third of the plant size and to hard prune only in the right window of time. An example for you is the 2nd boxwood I trimmed in the video. I chose to not trim back the top as much as the sides. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching and be sure to subscribe for more content!
You can do anything you want to to your shrubs theyre shrubs. I tend to trim them like a bansai tree. If you want to shorten them and you have some space to work with like theyre not crowding a walkway or something like that try cutting the whole center out being careful not to ruin the low branches then tons of light will flood in and lots of new sprigs will fill in the middle then you will have a wide short shrub that can keep a flat top
New subscriber who needs some advice. I bought Winter Gem Boxwoods and would like train them into about a 2' hedge as part of my foundation landscaping in front of my porch. Does it hurt them or make them grow ugly to keep them that short? Enjoyed the video.
Hello there! First off, thank you for watching and subscribing! So the research I did show me that the Winter Gem Boxwood typically grows to 2’ - 3’ so it looks like you should be perfectly good to maintain a 2’ hedge. The recommendation is that there should be some spacing in between each shrub, but personally I don’t see this as a concern.
Good question! So I have another video posted on my channel titled “UPDATE-6 Months after the 🌳 Boxwood HARD PRUNE”. You will see what the 6 month looks like but honestly after 2 months you’ll see the leaves filling the space again. Boxwood are very hearty plants. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching!
With Boxwood shrubs it’s important to only hard prune at the end of winter before spring where there is new growth. That being said, you can trim it year round as often as you would like. Hope this helps! Thanks for watching.
Tyler clark Hey there! Thanks for watching my fellow Tyler! Yea, if the weather is in fact similar to Georgia’s, it’s definitely a good time to do it around then, more so closer to March. The key is doing the hard prune just as the new growth is coming in if not just before.
Handyman for the Average Man Lol I see what you did there! We need more Tyler’s in this world. 🤣 Anyways thanks for the advice, I look forward to more videos like this about gardening and landscaping, or other things around the house. An idea: Do a follow up video on the hedges to see how they do once they start putting on new growth again. Much love from Oklahoma! LIKED & SUBSCRIBED
Thank you for the support! So I actually do have a follow-up video showing the growth 6 months after the boxwood hard prune. Another subscriber asked for it. Great thought! So if you look at my videos, this one is titled, “UPDATE-6 Months after the 🌳 Boxwood HARD PRUNE”. Hope you find that useful! And keep the suggestions coming!!
Hey L Williams, thanks for watching and the support! Keep in mind Boxwoods can be trimmed year round, but the hard prune has to be a very specific time, for example, early spring for Georgia. Otherwise you would risk damaging the shrub where it may cause shock. So In the meanwhile, do a maintenance trim to at least shape the plant up.
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975I’m in middle Ga and just hard pruned my shrubs. August 5th. I cut out all the green. Pretty sure I’ve killed everything.
I'm doing a hard pruning now (not the right time of year but mine has outgrown the space). It really looks bare, but I think it'll be OK. Thanks for posting this. You gave some good pointers.
Sometimes we gotta do what we gotta do, right? It should be fine after a while. It may cause initial shock to the shrub and May not get any additional growth for this growing season, but there isn’t a reason it won’t bounce back especially in the spring. They are very hearty. Thank you for the kind words and for watching! Feel free to subscribe if you’d like.
Oh my!!! My box woods are round and I prune them back every year BUT they need a bit of a hard pruning. It seems scary to prune back so far but I’ll give it a try. I live up north so I’ll have to wait until April or May. Will let you know how I make out. Wish me luck👍.
I wish you the best!! Yes it is scary but they are incredibly hardy and they will make it out better after the hard prune. Just pay special attention to the timing and the weather.
Can this be done now, in late spring? I live in Maryland, thank you for your video!
Thanks for watching and the question. Should it be done in late spring? No. Can it? Yes. The textbook answer is no because it’s not the healthiest time to do so. I say ultimately yes it can be done because the boxwood shrub is incredibly resilient. Worst case scenario it will look bad for the rest of the year but coming early spring next year it will bounce back just fine. My overall best recommendation is to not hard prune now. Prune it back a good bit now but not the allowed 1/3 for the hard prune. Hope this helps!
Really appreciate the video, will try
Thank you so much for taking the time to show others. Needed to see how to do pruning when it would be so hard that it was a lot of wood with little green. Encouraging to know that it is ok to prune that hard and I wasn't ruining shrub.
Happy to have helped you. Check out this other video. This should also reassure you.
ruclips.net/video/ZIPS_v-NBXc/видео.html
Great Job!!!
Could you post an update of how these look now, 6 mos later? Even a couple pics would be good.
Aaron Parsley hey there! Sure thing. I made and posted this video 6 months ago so I’ll post an update video for you. Subscribe so you can get the notification when I upload it!
Aaron Parsley I just uploaded earlier today an update video for you on the Boxwood hard prune. Hope that helps!
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975 2:46
Hey, great video...I was worried the plant had won and I would live with it out of control.
Thank you man. Super helpful.
You’re welcome!! I’m happy to have helped. If you have any other video requests lemme know!!
I Plan to do a hard prune on two boxwoods. 1/3 top-down (only) - no sides. Just want to get the height under control. It is end of May and early June - WILL I END UP KILLING IT OR WILL IT JUST LOOK A LITTLE UGLY? Thanks!
Thanks for the question @M. Tanner! I’m honestly not sure if you will kill it, but there’s definitely some risk involved doing a hard prune this late. It very well could put the plant in shock. I wouldn’t recommend that. I would only do a normal pruning and then wait until the winter for the hard prune to take the control back of the height. Hope this helps!
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975 I'm tempted to try it on one of them and see what happens - if they died I would not be terribly upset. Thanks for the response - I really appreciate your time!
-----
On a side note: do you have advice or a video on how to vet a "handy-man"?
@@M.Tanner if you don’t care that much if it were to die, I say go for it. I’d love an update if you remembered lol.
That’s a very good but important question. Well, there are several factors you can look at such as if they are licensed, how many years of experience they have, what their reviews are like from the community, looking at past projects if they have a sort of photo album or portfolio. Those are some of the ideas I had.
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975 If I go for the hard prune, then I will certainly keep you informed. Thanks for sharing your opinion!
Great video with before/after video. Curious what kind of Boxwood that is. Mine are much lighter and floppy looking. I would love to do a hard prune as they're much too big.
I am not very sure, but it certainly looks very similar to the American Boxwood or the Green Mountain Boxwood. Mine stays green year round.
What kind of hedge trimmers you using in this video??
Hey Tony. This was a Black and Decker model. I can get the exact model if You wanted.
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975 that would be great. Thanks
Thank you! I know I killed some of my mother's hedge last year. I didn't cut a third of it, but it's been there since I was a kid so it's at least 50 years old.
Tier is the word and yea if you survive the wrath of wife, tier or pylon shape . Ill explain. Dont cut the sides straight up cut them at a steep angle goind smaller to the top. That way more light will get to the bottom branches. Later in the growing season you can square them up. This way you will have thicker greenery at the base. Notice how most shrubs are a bit sparce at the bottom and sometimes full of holes at the bottom. So when you are hard pruning your shrubs in the fall or winter be sure to make them substancially smaller at the top.
Wow! Never thought of that. Impressive!
What if you just want to shorten the top of the hedge, do you have to do the whole shrub?
jewelbell5 not at all. You can trim back as little as you need to. It’s just important to remember to not prune back more than a third of the plant size and to hard prune only in the right window of time. An example for you is the 2nd boxwood I trimmed in the video. I chose to not trim back the top as much as the sides. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching and be sure to subscribe for more content!
You can do anything you want to to your shrubs theyre shrubs. I tend to trim them like a bansai tree. If you want to shorten them and you have some space to work with like theyre not crowding a walkway or something like that try cutting the whole center out being careful not to ruin the low branches then tons of light will flood in and lots of new sprigs will fill in the middle then you will have a wide short shrub that can keep a flat top
New subscriber who needs some advice. I bought Winter Gem Boxwoods and would like train them into about a 2' hedge as part of my foundation landscaping in front of my porch. Does it hurt them or make them grow ugly to keep them that short? Enjoyed the video.
Hello there! First off, thank you for watching and subscribing! So the research I did show me that the Winter Gem Boxwood typically grows to 2’ - 3’ so it looks like you should be perfectly good to maintain a 2’ hedge. The recommendation is that there should be some spacing in between each shrub, but personally I don’t see this as a concern.
How long does it take to fill back in with leaves?
Good question! So I have another video posted on my channel titled “UPDATE-6 Months after the 🌳 Boxwood HARD PRUNE”. You will see what the 6 month looks like but honestly after 2 months you’ll see the leaves filling the space again. Boxwood are very hearty plants. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching!
I'm in NY, when do you think the best time to do a hard prune is? Thanks
With Boxwood shrubs it’s important to only hard prune at the end of winter before spring where there is new growth. That being said, you can trim it year round as often as you would like. Hope this helps! Thanks for watching.
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975 ok thanks
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975 do you not encourage a hard pruning of Boxwoods in the fall?
how's it look now? May 2020
The unHandyman it’s looking shaggy and a tad overgrown! Life has been crazy lately!!
Hey man I’m in Oklahoma. Our weather is pretty similar to Georgia. Do you think I can do it in February or March?
Tyler clark Hey there! Thanks for watching my fellow Tyler! Yea, if the weather is in fact similar to Georgia’s, it’s definitely a good time to do it around then, more so closer to March. The key is doing the hard prune just as the new growth is coming in if not just before.
Handyman for the Average Man Lol I see what you did there! We need more Tyler’s in this world. 🤣 Anyways thanks for the advice, I look forward to more videos like this about gardening and landscaping, or other things around the house.
An idea: Do a follow up video on the hedges to see how they do once they start putting on new growth again.
Much love from Oklahoma!
LIKED & SUBSCRIBED
Thank you for the support! So I actually do have a follow-up video showing the growth 6 months after the boxwood hard prune. Another subscriber asked for it. Great thought! So if you look at my videos, this one is titled, “UPDATE-6 Months after the 🌳 Boxwood HARD PRUNE”. Hope you find that useful! And keep the suggestions coming!!
I need to do this but I think i've waited too late. I'm in GA also
Hey L Williams, thanks for watching and the support! Keep in mind Boxwoods can be trimmed year round, but the hard prune has to be a very specific time, for example, early spring for Georgia. Otherwise you would risk damaging the shrub where it may cause shock. So In the meanwhile, do a maintenance trim to at least shape the plant up.
@@handymanfortheaverageman7975I’m in middle Ga and just hard pruned my shrubs. August 5th. I cut out all the green. Pretty sure I’ve killed everything.
Is it OK now?
It’s perfectly fine now. I see you saw my other video showing 6 months after the hard prune. The boxwood is a VERY heartily plant.
What’s the trimmer name?
The electric hedge trimmer I used in this video is a Black & Decker 20” hedge trimmer. Any trimmer will do. Hope that helps! Thanks for watching.
Most people don’t know this
WOW, the shrub needs to breathe my friend, how about thinning the interior. Oh also hand pruning so ends are not torn