I read about pruning butterfly bushes, but I have several bushes
planted last April. They are now about 4 feet tall. Should these
bushed be pruned back to 1-2 feet high as recommended for more mature
bushes?

PaulF

Forgot to mention I live in Zone 7B.

PaulF

"Paul Ferguson" wrote in message
...
I read about pruning butterfly bushes, but I have several bushes
planted last April. They are now about 4 feet tall. Should these
bushed be pruned back to 1-2 feet high as recommended for more mature
bushes?

PaulF


I'm in zone 5/6, upstate NY. Because I've read conflicting ideas about
butterfly bushes, there have been years when I haven't pruned mine at all,
and the first year in this house, I hacked it to 12" in February. That's
generally a bad idea because enough mild weather can cause plants to make
buds, and when winter returns, they can be damaged. But, nothing seems to
hurt the butterfly bush.

I've done everything in between, too. Even when hacked severely, it was
still 8-10 feet tall by July.

If you're pruning for shape, go ahead and do it now if you're bored and need
something to do. But, I don't see that it matters. You can prune for shape
almost any time during the growing season, and the crazy bush will be back
to its previous size in about 20 minutes.

Paul

Good question.
Generally speaking. I would treat them as a tree. Wait until second
growing season before pruning stems. You have. If you understood targets
when pruning a tree, then there are two critical periods. I.e., when the
leaves are forming and when the leaves are falling. Like an airplane. Two
times are critical - taking off and landing. Of course when pruning a BF
Bush you are indiscriminately pruning, like topping a tree. The old timers
used to say winter was the best time to prune a tree. The question really
was when is the best time to severely wound a tree because they did not
understand targets. You could do that now, as long as the leaves are not
forming, or after the flowers have died.

On the topic of pruning here are two outstanding, top quality books on
pruning trees and woody plants.
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/TPRUNING.html

http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/TPB.html

And a site on pruning
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT20...ing/index.html

Also, you could follow proper mulching instruction.
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/M/mulch.html

I hope this helps you Paul.

--
Sincerely,
John A. Keslick, Jr.
Consulting Forester & Tree Expert
http://home.ccil.org/~treeman
and www.treedictionary.com
Beware of so-called tree experts who do not understand tree biology.
Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions keep reminding us
that we are not the boss.



"Paul Ferguson" wrote in message
...
I read about pruning butterfly bushes, but I have several bushes
planted last April. They are now about 4 feet tall. Should these
bushed be pruned back to 1-2 feet high as recommended for more mature
bushes?

PaulF