On Wed, 8 Jan 2003 23:30:34 +0000, Kay Easton
wrote:

In article , Barton
Bloggs writes
When is the best time to prune back an overgrown cotoneaster horizontalis?
Now or wait until spring?

Also, can it be cut back really hard or should it only be pruned lightly?

It can be cut back as hard as you like. It's indestructible.
Remember it berries on 2nd year wood - it won't have berries next winter
on anything it grows over the summer, so you might want to remember this
as you decide what to cut.

I didn't cut it back earlier because I wanted to leave the berries for the
birds, but now the berries are gone.

Our birds leave it till last, and in most years don't get around to it
at all.

Agree on the cutting back, we need to cut ours quite hard every year
to keep them in bounds. Interested to learn it is 2nd year wood that
berries.

The ever-present blackbirds and mistle thrushes (when around) only
just wait for cotoneaster berries to ripen, then the whole lot goes
very quickly. Not a berry left, well before Christmas! What other
berries are the birds in your garden taking first?

VivienB