Bloomin' Shrubs

Did you know that when your shrub blooms determines when it should be pruned or trimmed?  Occasionally we have a client that only does a spring clean-up and a fall clean-up and their lilac is not pruned according to what they expect.  This is not a mistake.  Any shrub that was blooming, or about to bloom at the time of a spring clean-up (March to May)would have been intentionally skipped so as to let it show off it's beauty. The majority of these same shrubs start setting their blooms by late summer/early fall. That being the case, if they are trimmed and shaped in a fall clean-up (October to November) the blooms for the following spring would be lost. Shrubs that fall into this category need to be shaped right after they are done blooming or just before the end of summer.  For those who only do a spring and fall clean-up, a special visit for those shrubs is needed to ensure they continue to bloom and look their best!