HOME AND GARDEN

NEWS photo Paul McGrath

Getting the dirt on pruning

LARRY Foden from Greenizaf Garden Supply recently taught a free pruning clinic to a roomful of avid gar-
deners at Dykhof Nurseries and Florist in North Vancouver. The garden centre, located at 469 Mountain Hwy.,
holds gardening seminars throughout the season.

THIS past winter has
been particularly miid
and the spring growing
season is coming on
very quickly.

f usually start to clean up
the dead leaf litter and debris
i ennial beds around

f March but this
year [ have already removed
much of the winter mulch
and replaced it with a laver of

ch black compost. Once the
new growth of the bulbs,
daylilies, hostas or phlox
emerge, it is difficult to
remove the fitter and add the
compost without damaging
or burying the tender shoots.

[f the perennials have been
in the same spot for a number
of years ic might be a good
time to divide the plants, get
rid of the old diseased centre

ions and renew the soil
with the addition of compost
or well rotted manure. The
newest and healthiest sections
of the perennials will be on
the outer edges.

Watch for over-wintering

s during ¥
spring cleanup. Placing
short board on the bare
gives the slugs a place to hide
when the leaf litter has been
removed, Turn the board
over every few days and dis-
pose of the slugs before they
attack the new spring growth.

Late winter is the time to
prune many of the shrubs and
trees in the garden. Not

everything has to be pruned
and plants that bloom on old
or ast year’s wood and have
already set their buds should
not be pruned until after they
bloom. ‘Phis would include
plants such as azalea, camellia,
forsvthia, Kalinia, Hlac, pieris
and rhododendron.

One common plant that
does need early pruning is
hedrangea. Hl. macrophylla
that comes in the ay
ball torm should have all the
old wood removed by cutting
the stalks right te the base of
the plant. The old wood has
rough, papery bark aad more
than three or four side sheots
whereas new wood has
smooth bark and few if any
side shoots. Removing some

year keeps the
new growth vigorous with
strong blooms. Old blooms
should be cut back to the first
or second large double buds
on the new stalks.

Hydrangea paniculata
asrandiflora, or “Pee Gee,” is
grown in the form of a small
tree and is pruned quite dif-
ferently from the macrophyl-
la. Allow the plant to form a
open tree-like structure and
then save only three or four
buds from last year’s growth.
The terminal bud shoutd be
on the lower side of the
branch, Should the branch
become too long by saving
three buds each year. cut the
old wood back and start over
again with new growth,

All fruit trees can be
pruned until they show signs
of bud break. Again, use the

bud method if the tree
is mature and the goal is to
encourage fruit buds and not
a lot of new branch structure.
Remember peach blossoms
form on one year old wood
so do not cut the branch back
to three buds.

See Vines next page

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