How to Trim an Evergreen Hedge
- 1). Begin trimming new evergreen hedges during the second growing season. Prune the hedge's branches with hand shears to maintain shape and size.
- 2). Trim the hedge when it's new, so that it slopes down from the top of the hedge to a broad base. Use hand shears to prune evergreen hedges when they're new.
- 3). Prune slow-growing, narrow-leaved evergreens, such as yew and arborvitae, with hand pruners in late spring or in early summer. Look for the leaves to turn from a light green to a dark green.
- 4). Trim broad-leaf evergreen hedges, such as boxwood, several times throughout the growing season with hedge shears. Prune the hedge in spring and trim branches as needed until the fall.
- 5). Trim fast-growing evergreen hedges, such as hemlock, after new growth has begun in the spring, and trim a second time in late July. During the first and second growing seasons, cut the hedges short by one-third to half their height.
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