“The critical thing to remember about winter pruning is that the harder you cut, the more vigorous the regrowth”
When the last leaf has fallen and bare branches are revealed – but the sky is clear and dry – then it’s the perfect time for winter pruning. This is a job that best fits into the horticultural no man’s land of January and February when the soil is resistant to nurture and all but the earliest and hardiest plants are still hunkered down against the cold to come. The clue, of course, is in the name. Winter pruning is done in the bleakest part of mid-winter for good reasons.
Although it can start at any time from November and continue until the middle of March, I have a basic rule for my timing of winter pruning: I do not begin until the leaves have fallen and I try to get it done before the leaves start to reappear.
Three main reasons for pruning are: to restrict growth, to promote growth and to curtail or cure damage from injury or disease. Whatever the desired effect is,
