So, the closing is tomorrow and I feel decidedly sick to my stomach. I’m buying a house that’s got these shrubs in front and around the side with the porch, and they’re a) ugly, and b) overgrown. Also they’re all grown together. They’ve gotten too tall on the porch side, they just don’t look good. I was going to take some of them out, but upon further examination on the walkthrough today I realized just how big some of them are - they’re probably as old as the house, which is 70something. So taking them out looks unfeasable.
My mom suggests having one of the contractors coming for various things prune them back with a chainsaw, but will that really give them a better shape in the long haul? Should I get in there with loppers and prune the crap out of them? Will that kill them? Will it help? How should I go about it? They’re too close together, I think, to start with. And the green part is, I think, kind of too high up - there’s too much “stem”. I am planning on putting a lot of flower-beddage there (gotta cut down on all that lawn to mow!), which will I guess kind of ameliorate that problem. I’ve never had a house before and never pruned anything in my life and I could really use some advice on this shrubbery thing. It’s just not acceptable as it is, though, it looks like some weird overgrown house-moustache!
Also I might be able to take pictures tomorrow after the closing (they’re not moving out until the very end of their 24 hours, either, the vermin!) to illustrate what I’m talking about, if need be.
We actually had several old, and thick trunked (for shrubs, at least) shrubs in front of our house. One was a Juniper, whic had a 4 inch trunk. The other two were Callistemon (Bottlebrush), which had 3 inch trunks. We cut all three down, and left the stumps in the ground. We pretty much had to with the Callistemon because they have incredibly hard wood. I gave up using a saw and switched to a hatchet. There was no way we were going to be able to remove the stumps and a stump grinder was out of the question, so they sit and are slowly rotting away. However, this only really works on shrubs that aren’t vigorous stump sprouters. The Callistemon tried to sproud a few times, but with enough removal of new growth they finally died.
Do not follow your mom’s advice. I hate, hate, hate when people do that. You essentially create a coppice which is only useful if you intend to remove the shoots annually for making woven hurdles or fences or for kindling. Pollarding is similar, but is done on trees (and is like topping trees, which is also bad).
Cutting things back with a chainsaw and letting them regrow will only result in an unhealthy plant covered in long adventitious shoots. That is not the way to restore any sort of esthetics. If you want to prune them for better shape, here’s a technique as outlined in “The Landscaping Revolution: Garden With Mother Nature, Not Against her”:
You’ll need two pruners: a long handled pair about two feet (60cm) long, and a smaller one handled pruner, about nine inches (25cm) long.
Now, check the trunks. If two are growing into each other and are rubbing off the bark (providing an opening for infection), keep the trunk that is growing outward, and remove the one that is growing inward. Cut it back to ground level (or back to just above the collar (the ring of swollen bark at the base of the trunk).)
Check the aesthetic quality of the trunks that are left. Be very cautious about taking out trunks that are not potential problems. Have someone pull the trunk in question as far out of the way as possible, so you can see how the tree will look without it. If you’re still in doubt, leave it. You can always remove it later, but you can’t glue it back.
Now, start cutting off all the branches that grow in toward the center of the tree. Cut every one of them off at the collar – that’s the slight thickening of the branch where it joins a larger branch or trunk. The idea is to give the tree a nice, airy, open feel in the middle.
If the branches have been hedged or hacked back so many times that the branching looks like a starburst of mini branches (a very ugly look), cut back to the first long, undamaged branch that points outward.
Do not cut off the end of a branch for at least five years; this allows the branches to grow long enough to give your yaupon (a holly), or whatever, a treelinke structure. After five years, if your tree is as large as you want, you can begin cutting off end branches – but always cut them off at a collar. Do not just snip off the end.
Why not have them take them down to the ground with a chainsaw. Then, go to a rental place and get a stump grinder for a half day. You can even find some other people who have stumps and share the rental fee. Then you can start from scratch.
I just bought a house last month, and one of the big selling points in my eyes was that there were no shrubs. I get to work with a clean pallate and it has been a blast so far. And congrats on the house!
Well, having thought about it I’m not sure I want to get rid of all of them like I originally thought - I mean, they’re old and venerable and have been there a hell of a lot longer than I’ve been alive, I’d feel guilty. So I was thinking I might remove a few and prune the others. I’d like to replace some of the boring evergreens with something pretty that blooms, you know?
Doobieous, that’s really helpful - but can I do all that now, in August/September? Or should you wait until winter to get medieval on a shrub? I don’t even know what kind they are; flowers I’m getting to know pretty well with all my gardening books I’ve been buying in preparation for home ownership, but the more boring shrubs I can’t identify if they aren’t holly or juniper. There’s more than one kind of shrub here; actually I think they may all be different.
If they’ve grown in and together like they have, and they’re too close together, will it be necessary to get rid of some?
Well, without knowing what they are, it’s hard to say, but generally pruning prohibitions come from preventing new growth from getting damaged by winter cold. Where I live (near Monterey), we can prune things all year long because it rarely freezes that cold. I think you probably have time to prune and allow new growth to harden off.
One typical shrub is either boxwood (small rounded leaves), or privet (larger oblong leaves with white sprays of flowers). If you can get a picture of them, I can probably tell you what they are.
I generally reccomend removing all shrubs unless they’re causing a problem, are severely diseased or in the way. A more natural solution is to take out a few, but leave small groupings. It may take a while, but you can eventually rehabilitate them so they take on a natural form.
Mini rant: I really don’t get this obsession with hedges and topiaries in the US… WHY does anyone like that much work? Besides, most of these shrubs were picked for either flowers or natural form in the first place. Why not celebrate that? Pyracantha looks prettiest when grown natural, but enhanced by pruning, same with boxwood, which are gorgeous if pruned properly.
We really need to know what kind of shrubs you have. They could be valuable plants that will look great a year or two after severe pruning. You’d be disappointed to cut them down only to find that replacing them will cost hundreds of dollars and that the replacements won’t look good for years.
Some shrubs can be pruned just about any time and any way, other can’t really be pruned at all without looking permanently terrible. In between are those that can be made to look great with proper pruning done at the right time.
In general, it’s best to prune when the plants are dormant in the winter. And in general, it’s best to lop branches off selectively at their base rather than to use a hedge trimmer.
One consideration is the sun these plants get. If they are in much more shade now than they were when they grew up, they may be unattractively “leggy” when they grow back after pruning. If the plants require more light than they now get, you will have to either replace them with more shade-tolerant plants or trim whatever is shading them.
I’ve had good luck talking to my local greenhouse. For $50, they will come out, walk around your property with you, and help you with planning/maintaining ideas. Then, when you go spend money for new plants, they credit most of the $50 back to you.
I’ll try to get some pictures up today - would you believe those people are actually using their 24-hour grace period to get out of the house? The nerve of some people!
I’m sure at least some of them are boxwood - we’re not supposed to be planting privet as it invades the hell out of our native woodlands, but some of these might be. I’d like to put in some gardenias and hydrangeas and maybe some native azaleas, but I don’t want that “just clear-cut and landscaped” look, and plus, why kill something if you don’t have to? I don’t mind putting some work in if the best way to do this is really to put a bit of work in.
Boxwood is expensive, slow growing, and looks good all year. If that’s what you have I’d try to save it. Hydrangeas and native azaleas only look good for part of the year; I wouldn’t use them up against the house. As for privet, I’d rather have kudzu.
Okay, I got some pictures taken. (This house thing might kill me - I spent three hours at Lowes’ today, and it’s sooo hot outside!)
Theseare the shrubs in the front to the right of the walkway. They look okay but they could look better, I think, right?
These are the ones to the right of the walkway. They’re pathetic. Can they be assisted?
These are the ones I was really talking about, on the side of the house, by the porch. Should some of them be eliminated? Can they be pruned? What are they?
And the bonus question - what’s this thing ? It’s growing up against the other side of the house and my instinct is to remove it, but I’d like to know what it is. Here’s a closeup
Eek, nobody? Now that I’ve illustrated the problem?
I’ve also got a problem, I’ve found, with volunteer seedlings sidling around my foundation. Obviously I’ve got to kill them (one looks suspiciously like a baby oak tree) - do I have to dig them up, or can I just cut them down to the ground and lop off anything that sprouts? Once I’ve gotten the aboveground portion out is there any further danger to my foundation? Thanks.
Sprouts: Cut them to the ground and either paint the cut ends with concentrated glyphosphate or wait until they sprout and spray with dilute glyphosphate.
Mystery tree: Hard to tell, there seem to be at least 4 different plants in both photos. Looks like some kind of trash tree. Is it growing form a stump? If so, I’d cut it down again. If the county has an agricultural extension agent who is a horticulturist, you could take branch to her and ask for an ID. You could also go ask someone at a real nursery (not at a big box store). Or, you could ask around and see if you have a neighborhood garden club and ask someone there. All of these alternatives are free.
Shrubside looks like a mess but I’d really have to know what kinds of plants you have to make a recommendation. If you don’t want to bother much, you could just cut them all down to 6 inches or so this winter and then see what they look like next summer. But if I were you, I’d get someone to identify them for me and then figure out a plan.
Shrubsright/left: You’ve got a hodgepodge there but I think that you have a few nice plants among them. The problem is that a brick house with columns needs landscaping with a certain about of formality and that means symmetry. So even if you have a nice boxwood on one side, it won’t look good unless there is one that matches on the other side.
You also have a major problem with grass, or lack of it. If you don’t have plenty of sun, give up on grass anywhere that is isn’t growing now.
Fall is the time to plant in SC. The plants won’t be stressed by summer heat and will have a chance to grow their roots a bit before the soil cools down. Also, the plants will be cheaper to buy. The problem is that nothing will be in bloom so you won’t know exactly what things will look like and the selection will be poor.
Do you have a neighbor with a nice yard who works in it on weekends? If so, I’d walk over and get acquainted. Everyone is flattered by being asked for their advice.
