Story: Pruning For Growth
Episode: 9
Presenter: Darren Seinor
Air Date: 27th April 2024

Darren shows us the best way to prune for growth.

• Pruning is essential for strong, healthy, and well-grown plants.
• Despite encouraging growth in spring and summer, cutting back in cooler months is beneficial.
• Roses benefit from a hard winter prune to rejuvenate and shape them, removing diseased and damaged branches.
• Most roses flower on new growth, so pruning keeps them at a practical height and manageable size.
• Vigorous climbing plants require occasional pruning to control growth and maintain aesthetics.
• Tidying up vines and removing around 20% of plant mass keeps climbers in check.
• Pruning fruit trees prevents them from growing too tall, making harvesting and pest control difficult.
• Removing spindly, weak, diseased, or damaged growth from fruit trees promotes air movement and light penetration for ripening fruit.
• Pruning dormant deciduous trees should be followed by disease prevention measures like spraying for Peach Leaf Curl.
• Having the right tools and maintaining them is crucial for successful tree and shrub pruning.
• Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) such as eye protection, gloves, safety boots, long-sleeved shirts, and long pants are essential for safety.
• Overhead pruning requires extra caution and the use of a hard hat, especially when using ladders.
• Knowing your plant's growth habits and flowering times helps tailor pruning strategies for a manageable and sustainable garden.