What To Prune In Late Winter
Late winter, around February, can be a good time to prune trees and shrubs that are dormant. Pruning your trees late in the winter means that the wounds you create on the tree by pruning it will not be exposed long before your tree starts to grow again and seal up those wounds. When your trees are dormant, and the leaves are off of them, it can also be easier to see what and where to trim your trees. There are certain trees and shrubs that you should prune in the late winter, and others that you should avoid.
#1 Fruit Trees
The best time to prune fruit trees is during the late winter. When you prune your fruit trees though, make sure that you are careful and selective about your pruning. The flowers that will support the fruit on your fruit tree only grow on old growth, not new growth.
That means that the flowers will only grow on the old growth that is left behind on the tree; flowers will not grow on the new-growth, which is why you need to be careful with how much you trim back the tree. If you trim it back too much, you will not get enough fruit next summer. However, tasteful trimming will actually help make the apples that grow on your trees tastier and juicier.
#2 Summer Flowering Trees
You can also trim summer flowering trees during the winter. Trimming summer flowering trees will give the trees enough time to support new growth and new flowers when spring rolls around. You can trim most ornamental trees that bloom in the summer, not the spring time. These include trees such as: Rose of Sharon, Vitex, Crape Myrtles and Smoke Trees.
#3 Some Hydrangeas
There are some hydrangeas that you can prune in the winter. You can prune hydrangea paniculata and H. arborescens in the winter time. Both of these types of hydrangeas actually flower on the new wood that grows in the spring, so cutting back these plants actually helps promote new growth and the presence of more flowers on these trees. Your hydrangeas will look better if you trim the this winter.
Make sure that the hydrangeas you have are not H. macrophylla, which require old growth for flowers to bloom.
#4 Roses
Three types of rose – climbing roses, old-fashioned roses and hybrid tea roses – can all be pruned in the winter time. You should prune these bushes in the late winter when you take the winter protection off of them.
Before you trim any trees or bushes this winter, make sure you research if it is a good idea to trim the particular trees and bushes you have on your property in the late winter. A certified arborist or tree service can help you with this task.