Pruning Burning Bushes

            If you have Burning Bushes now would be a good time to prune them.

            The Burning Bush, as you may know, turns red in the fall; it does this only with leaves that have been exposed to sunlight for a number of weeks. People who prune them too late in the season will have removed all these poetical red turning leaves, leaving those that have been shaded by the ones they have just remove, and therefore no red will be seen in the fall.

            Pruning them now will have them looking tidy throughout the winter and spring; with growth happening in the summer and into the fall; but not so much as to be a problem.

            Yearly pruning of the Burning Bush can produce what is called “witch brooming”. It happens when the pruner only removes the tops on each branch. Multiple stems cluster at the end of this branch, which does produce a very thick looking bush, which people like to see; but it becomes so thick that most everything under this canopy dies and falls off.

            Every so often these thick clusters should be removed. A negative here is you do end up with a very thin shrub for a month or so; before it grows back.

            It is better to do this kind of pruning in the late fall, after they’ve turned red and have fallen off, or early spring.

If you have any questions feel free to e-mail me at NiemeyerLandscaping@Gmail.com or post a comment on this Blog. And like us on Facebook at Niemeyer Landscaping. For more Landscape and garden info and pictures on the subject check us out at www.NiemeyerLandscaping.com