When Should I Prune a Mugo Pine
Today people are looking for information on how to prune a mugo pine. That is the Google interpretation of what people want from this garden journal.
The Answer to Your Quandary
It is just a little too late to be asking that question. New Pine growth is shows up in the spring. That is the time to prune a Mugo Pine: cutting only the “candles” of new growth, never cutting back old growth.
Ask me how I know timing is important for pruning?
I was out of town when the time to prune the mugo pines was in season and I missed it. I had pruned off about half the candles of the one nearest the porch, but then got busy getting ready for my trip South and never resumed the job.
The other Swiss Mountain shrub (aka Mugo) … the one that is already grown out of bounds on the other side of the house… didn’t get pruned at all.
I think it is a tree, now.
Luckily, the location is fine for its growth; but still, I had not intended for it to be more than a shrub.
A longer observation is on shrubs that are sold as “dwarf”, like Mugo Pines. Sometimes the varieties stay very small, and those are usually hard to source named varieties. In the general supply of these shrubs, the height, width and shape are widely variable and you might well need to prune.
Without pruning each year, or at least every other year… the plants can turn into a tree. Usually too large and ungainly for the foundation planting you anticipated.
But June is just the right time to prune other things, like the Spring blooming shrubs:
Lilacs, Viburnums, Forsythia, Weigela, et al … all those shrubs that just finished flowering last month and could use a good trimming up! The time is now, and I have just the post for you:
Other Chores for this Time of Year
This has been a year for that, so far. I started weeding the stone walk yesterday. The front garden will get mown (that is held off until bulb foliage matures), and will continue the “front yard recovery act”.
At least the weather has been nice!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ // ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
© 2011 written for Ilona’s Garden Journal. An excellent blog.
