Pruning Hellebores and Dogwood

Hellebores:

Hellebore leaves are prone to a number of different leaf borne diseases. As well as spoiling its appearance, the diseases can spread back into the plant and kill it! It is therefore best to cut of the leaves in February time (or earlier).. This also has the advantage of showing off the flowers that might otherwise be hidden.

You’ll need:

• A pair of sharp secateurs (for thicker stems you may need loppers/ pruning saw)

• Something to put the leaves in!

To prune:

• find the leaf at the top of the stem and follow it down to the base.

• Cut it as near the ground as possible – but take not to cut the flowering stem!

The result of your efforts should be a much better-looking plant!

Put the dead leaves in a black bin liner to dispose of them. And don’t think this hurts the plant, new leaves will appear by spring!

Dogwoods (Cornus)

Dogwoods are usually grown for the brightly coloured stems; these give colour in the garden in winter when not much is flowering. To make sure they continue to produce colourful stems they should be pruned regularly.

Basic pruning rules for Dogwoods:

• Wait until the stems are coming into bud

• Prune stems annually (e.g. Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’)

• For variegated types cut out a third of the stems every year (e.g. Cornus alba ‘Elegantisima’) and,

• new plants should be left to establish for three years before pruning

If in doubt just look up the name of the plant (always keep your plant labels!)

You’ll need:

• A pair of sharp secateurs (for thicker stems you may need loppers/ pruning saw)

• Something to put the cut stems into

To prune:

• Find a stem and follow it down to the base.

• Cut through the stem around 2 to 3 inches (3cm) from the ground cutting towards a bud

• Repeat until the appropriate number of stems (see rules) are cut.

Rather than disposing of the stems you can use them to grow more plants.