Mock orange is a beautiful shrub that produces lovely, fragrant flowers in the summer. It’s relatively easy to care for and maintain, but pruning your mock orange is essential to ensure its health and longevity. Pruning helps remove dead branches or stems, promotes new growth, controls the shape of your plant, and enhances flower production. In this blog post, we’ll discuss how to prune mock orange properly.
When should you prune mock orange?
Mock oranges bloom on old wood; therefore, they are best pruned immediately after flowering. Pruning at any other time during the year may limit or even eliminate next year’s blooms.
Tools you’ll need
Pruning can be done with hand pruners or loppers depending on the size of your shrub. Make sure you use clean tools because dirty ones can introduce diseases into your plant.
How much should I prune?
The amount of pruning required depends on how large your shrub has grown since last season; generally speaking, you should aim to remove about one-third of its total height each year (unless it has grown abnormally fast). This will encourage more vigorous growth from below where there will be plenty of light reaching it without being shaded out by higher foliage levels.
Step-by-step guide:
1) Remove all weak or dead branches first – these are often seen as narrow sticks pointing upwards with no leaves.
2) Cut back any diseased stems beyond the point where disease symptoms show visible signs – making sure not to leave any stubs behind that could harbor pathogens.
3) Look for crossing branches which rub together causing wounds along their length until bark damage occurs – these must also go so air can circulate within well-spaced healthy limbs
4) Thin out dense areas from inside too: removing some interior shoots encourages better airflow through less crowded areas promoting better leaf coverage overall resulting in healthier plants.
5) Finally cut back broken tips because once trimmed they won’t form flowers; so wait until flowering season before snipping back those branches.
In conclusion, pruning your mock orange is critical to keeping it healthy and beautiful. It is essential to prune at the right time of year and use clean tools for the job. Remember, removing a third of its height each year will encourage vigorous growth and promote more abundant blooms next season. Follow our step-by-step guide to ensure you’re getting the most from your shrub, and enjoy its beautiful flowers all summer long!
