June and early July is mid-season pruning time on the West Coast. As plants flush out people start panicking and out come hand snips and power shears. This is especially true on strata (multi-family) sites where there is limited space and nature must be harshly controlled.

Autopilot?

Successful pruning requires good knowledge of plants and an intimate knowledge of your clients’ sites. Autopilot pruning can lead to disaster. We can’t just take a run at the landscape. Why not? Because different plants have different flowering times and specific requirements. For example, I power shear Philadelphus x virginalis but not Rhododendrons.

Power sheared Rhododendrons look ugly.

Owners also have their specific requirements which is why it’s important to keep detailed site notes and inform all new employees.

Weeping owner

This weeping lilac is nicely pruned but the worker went a bit too far. You have to disconnect your autopilot and think about the plant’s growth habit. It’s OK to keep any weeping branches from touching the ground but it’s a mistake to eliminate the weeping habit.

When the owner came home, her lilac wasn’t weeping anymore but she was. And the worker learned a good lesson.

Mind the gap

Last year I was sent to this site to help with pruning. How would you prune this area?

Incorrectly thinking the small Prunus laurocerasus ‘Otto Luyken‘ in the middle had to be rescued, I expertly shaved both Prunus lusitanica hedges. Minutes later I got a lecture from the owner: he was hoping the two Portuguese laurels would become one. I had no idea. One year later they’re getting closer but I still think the small laurel in the middle is thinking….WTH?

Conclusion

Successful pruning requires good plant and site knowledge. When owners have weird habits and requests make note of them and inform any new staff. If you learn a good lesson the hard way then learn from it and move on. The shrubs will grow back.

I love the early summer season. The weather is nice and the landscape is lush green. But with the new lush green growth come issues. People start panicking and assaulting their busy green workers with requests.

And often the requests turn out to be minor issues, easily solved with a bit pruning. For any bigger requests, write them down and do them on your next visit.

Let’s take a look at some recent examples.

Mailbox crisis

Last week I was approached by an elderly gentleman who clearly wasn’t impressed by the mailbox Clematis. The vine interfered with the pick up of his junk mail so he asked me to take care of it. Sure. The whole operation, not counting clean-up blow, took me about ten minutes.

To an elderly resident this is a crisis.

This should do.

Not a bad show for a mailbox kiosk.

Gate

Again, this is hardly a disaster. Plus, the Hydrangea is blooming nicely. But to the lady living in this unit this is a major annoyance because she has to push the gate open. And as she does so the gate bounces off the plant and back into her body.

Luckily, I was on site helping out and took care of it right away. Always do this if it doesn’t interfere with your day plan. Of course, I did warn her that she would lose some of her flowers. No big deal. She didn’t care.

All done! Problem solved.

Signs

Signs are posted for a good reason; to warn or inform, not for fun. And again, this was a quick fix with my hand snips. The dogwood shrub (Cornus) can also be power sheared but I prefer nice precise cuts.

This was an easy two-minute fix.

As plants push out new growth in early summer you can expect to get some interference. Usually it’s not the disaster people make it out to be. So take care of it right away if possible. All of the examples above were quick fixes and the residents appreciated it. Always make your clients happy!