How to Keep Box Hedges in Control

If you don't want your hedge to look like something out of the Addams Family home, you will need to prune it after a schedule. A simple box hedge can be made to look like anything you want – simply with a pair of shears and a level. Whether you simply want it to be trim and neat, or whether you want it to look like animals all the year round or even create a bonsai, its easy to do with a little bit of creativity and a good set of equipment.

Wait for steady growth.

Just like a hair-cut, wait for a reasonable amount of steady growth on your hedges before you try to shape it. How do you tell if there is a steady growth or not? If there is a lighter green shade along the outer edges of the plant, this means that the hedge is growing healthily and will respond to your prunes.

Make sure the hedges are level.

Unless all the plants are at the same size your box hedge cannot be shaped well. Wait for all of them to attain the same level before you attempt to take up your shears. If you are shaping a hedge that is young, you can use a smaller pair of shears. This will cause less trauma to the hedges.

Now you can begin pruning.

First you will need to mark a level top. Use a string and two sticks to mark a horizontal level over the hedge. Once you have marked a level, use a pair of pruning shears that are sharp to trim the top along the string.You can use a level at this point to keep the string taut.

Next, hold the shears up vertically. Use your eye to snip off the sides of the hedge neatly. You don't need to be too precise in levelling the sides. You will notice that uneven sides are far less noticeable than an uneven top. Further, if you trim the sides of the hedge, it will make the bottom grow more steadily.

Once your hedge is trimmed, you will need to regularly prune it to maintain the shape. It's a good idea to do it twice in a season. Do this at least once in spring, after the passing of the last frost. Remember that new growth on the hedges can be very vulnerable to the cold. Repeat this once more during the fall.

You can shape your new hedge into any shape you want only after it has begun to thrive. It may take you many seasons to get the desired shape for your hedges. Farnham professional tree surgeons will be able to advise you on how to achieve the shape that you want. The skill lies in being able to study the basic structure of the trunk and then decide what shape can be achieved.