We have some overgrown globe cedars that need pruning badly. They are currently blocking our front door and we are worried about security. Any ideas on how we can cut these back. We are in Western Canada, zone 4A.
See attached picture:
Thanks for sending along the photo. Your cedars look to have maintained an attractive shape although are now too large for their location.
Our TMG youtube channel contains a video demonstrating how to prune and rejuvenate cedars. Click here to access this information.
In addition, Mark Cullen has posted a very practical article on cedars in general. Click here to access Mark’s article.
There is a lot of information in these two entries. Three points of particular importance to your situation are:
- While there may be a best time of year to prune your cedars, you can prune them at any time even mid-winter.
- If a cedar has not been pruned regularly, and grown too large, you should remove not more than 1/3 of the foliage each year till you get it back to the size you are after.
- Only prune back to green foliage. Like most evergreens, cedars do not rejuvenate new foliage readily from woody tissue.
Most of our questions are from Ontario gardeners. All of the western provinces have their own Master Gardener groups who will be more familiar with your local conditions. Contact information for these associations can be found using the links below:
British Columbia Master Gardeners: https://mgabc.org/
Alberta Master Gardeners: https://mgaab.org/
Manitoba Master Gardeners: https://www.mgmanitoba.com/