Thanks everyone for the advice. After reading all of your different bits of
advice, I think I will leave them mostly alone, just trim out the dead
branches and scraggly tall ones. I did have one that the main bush died for
some reason last year. But there are a few new branches coming up from the
middle, and there are small azaleas all around the edge, where the low
hanging branches had rooted themselves. I would like to dig them up and
move some of them, but think I will leave them until next spring, I am
worried that I have already missed the window for moving them this year.
But we did trim back the dead bush as far as our pruning shear would let us.


Thanks so much for the advice.

Vicky