How and When to Trim Boxwoods for Lush, Shapely Shrubs That Look Beautiful Year-Round

Learning how and when to trim boxwoods will allow you to grow lush and shapely shrubs that look fantastic year-round. But if you're new to gardening, you may be wondering where to start. I'll cover the boxwood pruning basics you need to know before you make the first cut.

Introduced to America in 1652, boxwood shrubs have been gracing gardens since colonial times. Members of the genus Buxus include about 30 species and 160 cultivars, including Buxus sempervirens, or the common American boxwood. The varieties are largely based on leaf size and growth which can range from 1 to 20 feet (0.3-6 m) tall.

Boxwoods are an old-fashioned favorite. Many gardeners used to trim boxwood bushes into severe and often geometric shapes, but you can grow them in looser shapes to create a more modern feel in your garden. No matter what style you prefer, pruning these evergreens the right way is key to getting your desired look and keeping shrubs healthy. Here's how to do it.

Do You Need to Prune Boxwoods?

When you choose the right boxwood varieties, they need very little pruning. This low-maintenance evergreen shrub is easy to grow and thrives under many conditions that would defeat a less sturdy plant.

Their compact evergreen leaves add texture and form to the garden when all else falls to winter's sleep. Used as a hedge, nothing provides a better screen against an unsightly view. That said, these handy evergreens do need occasional pruning.

Boxwood, like most shrubs, needs regular cleaning out of dead or twisted branches that can be harmful to the bush's health. Even when chosen for a particular size or shape, errant branches or twigs on your boxwood may need trimming. But overall, these bushes don't need much care compared to other shrubs.

Essential Tools for Boxwood Pruning

When to Prune Boxwoods

As with any pruning job, you should be asking, "When is the best time to trim boxwoods?" You can trim boxwoods at any time of year but, for the sake of your plant's health, it's best to avoid shearing in the late fall.

The new growth that appears after trimming boxwood bushes in fall may not have time to harden off before frost. Shearing or trimming may be done with hand shears or with electric hedge clippers, like the recommended tools above. Shearing removes all or most of the most recent growth.

Before pruning, you should also take into account the age of your boxwoods. Young plants actually benefit from frequent shearing, whereas older plants may require less frequent shearing in favor of more extensive rejuvenation pruning.

The best time to trim boxwoods for shaping is during the first few years. This encourages good branching and new growth, which will result in denser growth and a more defined shape. But don't overdo it.

Excessive shearing can produce growth that's dense on the outside, but weak on the inside. This kind of growth can prevent light from reaching the center of the bush and leave the inner branches bare, which will slowly weaken your plant's structure.

How to Prune Boxwoods

First, start by removing any diseased or dying branches. Next, shear boxwood shrubs with a pair of electric hedge trimmers or manual hedge shears, like the ones recommended above. If you are pruning your boxwoods into a hedge or rectangles, angle your sides so the base of the shrub is a little wider than the top.

This allows sun to hit more evenly down the entire side of the plant. If you have straight sides or if your shrub is wider at the top, this blocks the sun from hitting the bottom of your boxwood. Eventually, the bottom will stop growing as strongly as the top and look less full at the base.

After that, you can look at trimming overgrown shrubs that are past their prime. Be careful, though. Hard pruning boxwoods can kill your shrub. It's wise only to take such drastic measures in stages, over several years if necessary, to give your boxwood shrubs the best opportunity to survive.

Pruning Boxwood Topiaries

There's one other way you can prune boxwoods that is a bit more labor intensive, but can create a truly unique design in your garden. If you don't mind a little extra work, boxwood shrubs make excellent topiaries.

Topiaries are living garden statuaries that can be molded into any shape your imagination can envision. Depending on the size and shape of your vision, you may need more than one boxwood to fill out the form.

The best time to trim boxwoods for topiaries is in the spring before new growth begins. Train smaller branches to form to the structure and prune larger branches to prevent them from growing toward the outside. As the seasons pass, your boxwood shrubs will take on the shape of the structure and you will have a unique conversation piece and interesting focal point for your garden.