Hello all,

Can anyone offer me some advice about these two plants. We moved into
an old house where the garden has been left to go a little wild(!) We
didn't do much to the plant life last year (waiting to see what would
appear etc) but now have some firm plans.

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.


Any help would be most appreciated.

Cheers,
Crom

crom wrote in news:k5v060l3po2kj8u5geo3vvcjv8qpv0bp02@
4ax.com:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

Some hebes are very intolerant of cutting back to woody growth, even if you
leave some leafy bits at the bottom. I killed a big one this way. :-(
Still, it was very leggy, and now I can see the lilies.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Yes this you can chop right back to a bare framework, it will be all the
better for it, and will be much less prone to greenfly and flower better if
well pruned from time to time.

Note though that honeysuckle is one of those things that climbs up to the
light then spreads out, so if the bottom is shady, it may always have a
tendency to go leaping up towards the light.

Victoria
--
gardening on a north-facing hill
in South-East Cornwall
--

crom wrote in news:k5v060l3po2kj8u5geo3vvcjv8qpv0bp02@
4ax.com:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

Some hebes are very intolerant of cutting back to woody growth, even if you
leave some leafy bits at the bottom. I killed a big one this way. :-(
Still, it was very leggy, and now I can see the lilies.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Yes this you can chop right back to a bare framework, it will be all the
better for it, and will be much less prone to greenfly and flower better if
well pruned from time to time.

Note though that honeysuckle is one of those things that climbs up to the
light then spreads out, so if the bottom is shady, it may always have a
tendency to go leaping up towards the light.

Victoria
--
gardening on a north-facing hill
in South-East Cornwall
--

crom wrote in news:k5v060l3po2kj8u5geo3vvcjv8qpv0bp02@
4ax.com:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

Some hebes are very intolerant of cutting back to woody growth, even if you
leave some leafy bits at the bottom. I killed a big one this way. :-(
Still, it was very leggy, and now I can see the lilies.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Yes this you can chop right back to a bare framework, it will be all the
better for it, and will be much less prone to greenfly and flower better if
well pruned from time to time.

Note though that honeysuckle is one of those things that climbs up to the
light then spreads out, so if the bottom is shady, it may always have a
tendency to go leaping up towards the light.

Victoria
--
gardening on a north-facing hill
in South-East Cornwall
--

"crom" wrote in message
...
Hello all,

Can anyone offer me some advice about these two plants. We moved into
an old house where the garden has been left to go a little wild(!) We
didn't do much to the plant life last year (waiting to see what would
appear etc) but now have some firm plans.

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Can't help on the Hebe but AFAIK you can hack honesuckle around pretty
brutally and it will grow back.

ISTR we got ours as a chopped hunk of stem and root from someone else and it
grew out just fine.

If in doubt, chop back 50% of the stems this year and see if they grow back.

If not, you can just guide new growth back down to cover the bare bits near
the base - honeysuckle wanders all over the place.

HTH
Dave R

"crom" wrote in message
...
Hello all,

Can anyone offer me some advice about these two plants. We moved into
an old house where the garden has been left to go a little wild(!) We
didn't do much to the plant life last year (waiting to see what would
appear etc) but now have some firm plans.

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Can't help on the Hebe but AFAIK you can hack honesuckle around pretty
brutally and it will grow back.

ISTR we got ours as a chopped hunk of stem and root from someone else and it
grew out just fine.

If in doubt, chop back 50% of the stems this year and see if they grow back.

If not, you can just guide new growth back down to cover the bare bits near
the base - honeysuckle wanders all over the place.

HTH
Dave R

"crom" wrote in message
...
Hello all,

Can anyone offer me some advice about these two plants. We moved into
an old house where the garden has been left to go a little wild(!) We
didn't do much to the plant life last year (waiting to see what would
appear etc) but now have some firm plans.

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Can't help on the Hebe but AFAIK you can hack honesuckle around pretty
brutally and it will grow back.

ISTR we got ours as a chopped hunk of stem and root from someone else and it
grew out just fine.

If in doubt, chop back 50% of the stems this year and see if they grow back.

If not, you can just guide new growth back down to cover the bare bits near
the base - honeysuckle wanders all over the place.

HTH
Dave R

In article ,
crom wrote:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

You can try, but it may well not work. Many (all?) hebes are New
Zealand plants and are not adapted to browsing, so don't like that
treatment. But, if it would be unsightly if left as it is, you don't
have much to lose.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

It depends on the honeysuckle. Some can be cut back to ground level,
and others do not shoot well from very old wood. If there are lots
of separate stems rising from the ground, then it is almost certainly
one of the former, but it might be a bit of a shock to remove them
all. But, generally, honeysuckles can be pruned very hard, so it
is worth being fairly tough on it.

If it responds to being cut back and having old or dead stems cut
out by shooting from the base, you can then remove the other old
stems in successive years. I has some completely tangled
L. japonica, so I have sheared them off at ground level. They
clearly didn't like that but are reshooting.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article ,
crom wrote:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

You can try, but it may well not work. Many (all?) hebes are New
Zealand plants and are not adapted to browsing, so don't like that
treatment. But, if it would be unsightly if left as it is, you don't
have much to lose.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

It depends on the honeysuckle. Some can be cut back to ground level,
and others do not shoot well from very old wood. If there are lots
of separate stems rising from the ground, then it is almost certainly
one of the former, but it might be a bit of a shock to remove them
all. But, generally, honeysuckles can be pruned very hard, so it
is worth being fairly tough on it.

If it responds to being cut back and having old or dead stems cut
out by shooting from the base, you can then remove the other old
stems in successive years. I has some completely tangled
L. japonica, so I have sheared them off at ground level. They
clearly didn't like that but are reshooting.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article ,
crom wrote:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

You can try, but it may well not work. Many (all?) hebes are New
Zealand plants and are not adapted to browsing, so don't like that
treatment. But, if it would be unsightly if left as it is, you don't
have much to lose.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

It depends on the honeysuckle. Some can be cut back to ground level,
and others do not shoot well from very old wood. If there are lots
of separate stems rising from the ground, then it is almost certainly
one of the former, but it might be a bit of a shock to remove them
all. But, generally, honeysuckles can be pruned very hard, so it
is worth being fairly tough on it.

If it responds to being cut back and having old or dead stems cut
out by shooting from the base, you can then remove the other old
stems in successive years. I has some completely tangled
L. japonica, so I have sheared them off at ground level. They
clearly didn't like that but are reshooting.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

crom wrote in news:k5v060l3po2kj8u5geo3vvcjv8qpv0bp02@
4ax.com:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

Some hebes are very intolerant of cutting back to woody growth, even if you
leave some leafy bits at the bottom. I killed a big one this way. :-(
Still, it was very leggy, and now I can see the lilies.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Yes this you can chop right back to a bare framework, it will be all the
better for it, and will be much less prone to greenfly and flower better if
well pruned from time to time.

Note though that honeysuckle is one of those things that climbs up to the
light then spreads out, so if the bottom is shady, it may always have a
tendency to go leaping up towards the light.

Victoria
--
gardening on a north-facing hill
in South-East Cornwall
--

"crom" wrote in message
...
Hello all,

Can anyone offer me some advice about these two plants. We moved into
an old house where the garden has been left to go a little wild(!) We
didn't do much to the plant life last year (waiting to see what would
appear etc) but now have some firm plans.

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Can't help on the Hebe but AFAIK you can hack honesuckle around pretty
brutally and it will grow back.

ISTR we got ours as a chopped hunk of stem and root from someone else and it
grew out just fine.

If in doubt, chop back 50% of the stems this year and see if they grow back.

If not, you can just guide new growth back down to cover the bare bits near
the base - honeysuckle wanders all over the place.

HTH
Dave R

In article ,
crom wrote:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

You can try, but it may well not work. Many (all?) hebes are New
Zealand plants and are not adapted to browsing, so don't like that
treatment. But, if it would be unsightly if left as it is, you don't
have much to lose.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

It depends on the honeysuckle. Some can be cut back to ground level,
and others do not shoot well from very old wood. If there are lots
of separate stems rising from the ground, then it is almost certainly
one of the former, but it might be a bit of a shock to remove them
all. But, generally, honeysuckles can be pruned very hard, so it
is worth being fairly tough on it.

If it responds to being cut back and having old or dead stems cut
out by shooting from the base, you can then remove the other old
stems in successive years. I has some completely tangled
L. japonica, so I have sheared them off at ground level. They
clearly didn't like that but are reshooting.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

crom wrote in news:k5v060l3po2kj8u5geo3vvcjv8qpv0bp02@
4ax.com:

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

Some hebes are very intolerant of cutting back to woody growth, even if you
leave some leafy bits at the bottom. I killed a big one this way. :-(
Still, it was very leggy, and now I can see the lilies.

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Yes this you can chop right back to a bare framework, it will be all the
better for it, and will be much less prone to greenfly and flower better if
well pruned from time to time.

Note though that honeysuckle is one of those things that climbs up to the
light then spreads out, so if the bottom is shady, it may always have a
tendency to go leaping up towards the light.

Victoria
--
gardening on a north-facing hill
in South-East Cornwall
--

"crom" wrote in message
...
Hello all,

Can anyone offer me some advice about these two plants. We moved into
an old house where the garden has been left to go a little wild(!) We
didn't do much to the plant life last year (waiting to see what would
appear etc) but now have some firm plans.

There is a hebe that has got very woody and patchy but still has new,
healthy shoots appearing now about 2 feet off the ground. The
gardening book we have says 'gentle clipping in March'. But is it
possible to cut is back hard and encourage growth from the woody
stems?

The same question about the honeysuckle really. This too has plenty of
twisted, woody stems - very thick in places - and no foliage until you
get to about 4-5 feet from the ground.

Can't help on the Hebe but AFAIK you can hack honesuckle around pretty
brutally and it will grow back.

ISTR we got ours as a chopped hunk of stem and root from someone else and it
grew out just fine.

If in doubt, chop back 50% of the stems this year and see if they grow back.

If not, you can just guide new growth back down to cover the bare bits near
the base - honeysuckle wanders all over the place.

HTH
Dave R