Pruning trees and shrubs, Shrubs

Pruning Older Shrubs

Pruning older shrubs isn’t really about making them look neat. It’s about helping them feel young and rejuvenated again. Over the years, shrubs get woody, crowded, and a little tired. They often grow thick on the outside while the inside becomes bare and lifeless. The good news is that most older shrubs respond really well when you prune them the right way.

Late winter or very early spring is usually the best time to do this while the shrub is still dormant. You can see the structure clearly, and once spring arrives, the plant quickly pushes out fresh growth. The exception is spring-blooming shrubs like lilac or forsythia. Those should be pruned right after they finish blooming, so you don’t accidentally remove this year’s flowers.

Start by crouching down and looking at the base of the shrub. You’ll usually see a mix of thick, old woody stems and some thinner, newer ones. The oldest stems are often dark, rough, and don’t leaf out very well anymore or maybe even dead. Those are the ones you want to focus on.

Instead of trimming the top like you would a hedge, reach inside the shrub and begin cutting the oldest stems all the way down to the ground. This is called renewal pruning. Removing about a third of those old stems each year opens up the center, lets light and air in, and encourages brand new shoots to grow from the base.

As you work, take out any stems that are dead, broken, rubbing against each other, or growing toward the center. This helps clean up the structure and prevents crowding.

If the shrub is very overgrown and out of control, you can use a more dramatic approach called rejuvenation pruning. In late winter, you cut the whole shrub back to about 6 to 12 inches from the ground. It looks drastic, but many shrubs bounce back with strong, healthy growth. This works well for shrubs like spirea, potentilla, dogwood, and lilac. It’s not a good idea for slow-growing shrubs or most evergreens.

After you’ve removed the old wood and problem stems, you can lightly shape what’s left. Try not to turn it into a tight ball. Shrubs should be a little wider at the bottom than at the top so sunlight can reach all parts of the plant.

One of the most common mistakes with older shrubs is trimming the outside. That creates a thick shell of growth and a dead interior. Pruning from the inside out keeps the shrub healthy and looking good for years.

With a little patience and some thoughtful cuts, an old, overgrown shrub can start looking lively and full again in just a couple of growing seasons.

A hand-drawn diagram illustrating five steps for pruning an older bush that is four or more years old.
Garden almanac, Garden hacks

Tapping a Maple Tree

Tapping a maple tree is a straightforward process if you follow the right steps. First, choose the right tree. Ideally, it should be at least 10–12 inches in diameter at chest height. Only tap healthy, strong trees, and stick with sugar maples if you want the sweetest sap, though red and black maples will also work.

Timing is important. Maple sap flows in late winter to early spring when nights are below freezing and days rise above freezing. This freeze-thaw cycle creates pressure that moves the sap through the tree. Signs to watch for include tight buds and healthy-looking bark.

A metal bucket hanging from a maple tree with a spile, collecting dripping sap in a snowy environment.

Next, gather your tools. You’ll need a drill with a 5/16” or 7/16” bit (depending on your spile), taps or spiles, a hammer or mallet, food-grade buckets or tubing for collecting sap, and optional lids to keep debris out.

When you’re ready to drill, choose a spot about 3–4 feet above the ground, preferably on the sunny side of the tree. Drill a hole slightly upward at a 5–10° angle and about 1.5–2 inches deep. Clean out the wood shavings from the hole before inserting your spile. Gently tap the spile in with a hammer until snug. Then hang your bucket or attach tubing to collect sap, covering it with a lid if you like.

Once the tap is in place, collect daily sap. Sugar maples can produce 1–5 gallons of sap per day under ideal conditions. The flow usually lasts 4–6 weeks, ending when the buds start swelling. At the end of the season, remove the spile. The tree will naturally seal the hole over time. Avoid over-tapping: use one tap for trees under 18 inches, two taps for 18–25 inches, and three taps maximum for 25 inches and larger.

Finally, boil the sap to make syrup. It takes about 40 gallons of sap to produce 1 gallon of syrup, depending on sugar content. Boil until it reaches 219°F or around 66–67% sugar. Keep sap cool if you’re storing it before boiling, and always use clean, food-grade containers. Following these steps will let you enjoy fresh maple syrup while keeping your trees healthy.

Pruning trees and shrubs

Properly Prune an Old Popular Tree

I once decided I was finally going to “properly” prune an old, popular tree in the yard. I had watched exactly one video online, which of course made me an expert. The guy in the video used words like structure, balance, and intentional cuts. I grabbed my loppers with great confidence and absolutely no idea what any of that meant.

The first branch I cut looked great. Very professional. Clean angle. I even stepped back and admired it like a tree surgeon who had just saved a patient.

Undeterred, I decided to prune another branch. That’s when I realized ladders and pruning require a level of coordination I do not possess. Every time I reached for a branch, the ladder wobbled just enough to make me rethink all my life choices.

I cut another branch. This one did not fall gracefully like in the video. It swung down, scraped the side of the ladder, and landed directly on the rake I had thoughtfully left on the ground. The rake responded by springing upward and poking me in the shin. At this point, I began to suspect the tree was fighting back. Why did I not prune it when it was young?

An illustration and guide for pruning a tree, detailing which branches to remove (indicated by dotted lines) to achieve a single trunk, develop thickness, and remove dead, broken, crossing, or inward-turning limbs. The diagram also illustrates where to make cuts (outside the branch collar) and how to avoid stubs. A small inset image shows an example of the proper three-cut pruning method for large limbs.

The best time to prune most small trees is in late winter or very early spring, while the tree is still dormant. Without leaves, you can clearly see the structure, and once spring arrives, the tree quickly begins to heal. Try to avoid heavy pruning in the fall, but if you see a dead or broken branch, you can remove it anytime. This is done for most fruit trees and shade trees.

You don’t need fancy equipment. A good pair of hand pruners, some loppers, and maybe a small pruning saw are all you need. Just make sure they’re sharp and clean, so you make smooth cuts that the tree can recover from easily.

Start by taking care of the obvious problems. Remove any branches that are dead, broken, rubbing against another branch, growing downward, or heading toward the center of the tree. Many times, just cleaning up these issues makes the tree look better right away without doing any real “shaping.”

Next, find the main upright trunk, called the leader. Most young trees should have one strong central leader. If you notice two trunks competing with each other, choose the stronger one and remove the other. This helps the tree grow tall and sturdy instead of weak and split later on.

Then look for the branches that will form the tree’s main structure, often called scaffold branches. These should be spaced up and down the trunk, grow outward instead of straight up, and form wide angles where they meet the trunk. If branches are crowded together or growing at awkward angles, those are good candidates to remove.

When you make a cut, don’t cut flush against the trunk, and don’t leave a long stub. Look for the slightly swollen area where the branch meets the trunk, called the branch collar, and cut just outside of that. That’s where the tree naturally seals and heals the wound.