Any gardeners on here

[Guest Richzx6r]

Hi all just moved in 2 nearly 3 months ago and in the garden there is a large Laurus Bush type shrub thingy which is about 15 odd foot tall, now while I don't want it gone or dead it does need to be pruned quite alot, now my question is when is it ok to get the shears out and cut it back to size as its taking a large chunk of the view of the garden.

Any help would be appreciated thanks

[skyrider]

Hi just looked on a gardening site and it said late spring

[Guest Richzx6r]

Hi just looked on a gardening site and it said late spring

 

Ok thanks, I shall wait a couple of months then maybe end of April

[mikestrivens]

April is too early. My gardening book says "remove damaged stems and leaves in spring - trim to produce decorative shapes in summer". I had one of those and gave it a massive prune in summer and it came back even stronger, until I eventually dug it up with a JCB. The root ball weighed about a ton.

[Guest Richzx6r]

April is too early. My gardening book says "remove damaged stems and leaves in spring - trim to produce decorative shapes in summer". I had one of those and gave it a massive prune in summer and it came back even stronger, until I eventually dug it up with a JCB. The root ball weighed about a ton.

 

I was thinking about cutting it right down to say 2 n half 3 foot tall by a couple of foot around

[mikestrivens]

They are very hardy, but if you kill it so be it.

[Guest Richzx6r]

They are very hardy, but if you kill it so be it.

 

I'll do it once end of spring hits

[Bender]

Just remember it's grown to support the size it is, when you cut it back it's still got the huge root system, it's going to grow like mad, have you read The Day of the Triffids? I think your days are numbered, I would move if I were you.

[Guest Richzx6r]

Just how fast can it grow??

[Bender]

I cut a big bush/tree thing back to 1ft off the ground for next door neighbour last spring, it's now 7ft, I have no idea what it is but was so pleased he was cutting it back I got the chainsaw and axe out, I think it needs battery acid next.

[Guest Richzx6r]

I cut a big bush/tree thing back to 1ft off the ground for next door neighbour last spring, it's now 7ft, I have no idea what it is but was so pleased he was cutting it back I got the chainsaw and axe out, I think it needs battery acid next.

 

Bloody hell.....that's some growing that like maybe I'll have to ground level the bitch

[mikestrivens]

There's no need to be that drastic. You could reduce height by half one year and see what happens and then prune to shape the following year. Gardening is a long term thing. Unless you really do want to kill it I'd take it easy and see what happens.

[Guest Richzx6r]

Yea I dont want it dead just well kept and so we can see down the garden easily

[S-Westerly]

If it's a laurel they grow like bloody weeds. My son had an annoying one in the middle of his garden so we cut it back to about a metre high. Within the year it had doubled in size. My wife stepped in and killed it as a menace to horticulture. She takes gardens very seriously and considers laurels as the botanical version of Attila the Hun.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

You literally cannot kill Laurel. We inherited a 15 high hedge at the bottom of the garden. I took a chainsaw to it and reduced it to ground level. Within a year it was six foot high again.

Interesting thing is that in the spring you'll see loads of bees on the leaves. They have extrafloral nectaries at the base of the leaf. I leave it alone in the spring to keep my bees happy, then attack it come the autumn

Edited February 22, 2019 by Mississippi Bullfrog

[Six30]

I got one runs along the side of my garden .... Have to do it probably 2 or 3 times a year , I'd like to rip the fooking thing out and put a fence up , but the Mrs likes it , I should start making her cut it she wouldn't like it as much then .