Super video tutorial - thank you. One question, I read that there is a toxicity risk when pruning Portuguese Laurel - should I wear gloves when pruning?
In the Uk we have a brand of ladders called henchmen which are getting more popular and they are very like ur ladder. Just found ur channel liked and subscribed
Hi, yes, you can use hedge trimmers. The first reason I use secateurs is because it gives me more feeling for how I cut the shape of the bush as opposed to just cutting a straight line or formal round shape for example. The second reason is because I do not want to cut through the leaves as the cut edges will most likely turn brown. When using hedge trimmers, cutting through the leaves cannot really be avoided. However, if I had a 90 meter Portuguese laurel hedge, I would not prune that with secateurs either :)
Very interesting. The ladder looks good. Thanks for explaining why it is so useful. I often have trouble pruning large shrubs because they spring back so quickly and become even bigger and bushier than before. For example, I have a viburnum tinus shrub that is around 12 feet tall and we keep cutting it back to around 8 feet tall so it won't overpower our orange trees. However the viburnum shoots straight back up (and sideways) again. It is about to flower (autumn where I live in Melbourne Australia) so I will let it flower so that the bees can enjoy the flowers then I will chop it back to 8 feet again. But I am getting so tired of doing this. I have heard it is best to only plant shrubs that cannot grow past their allotted (planned) space in the garden. I keep planting ones that do not fit. For example I have an osmanthus fragrans shrub that is now crowding out a euonymus alatus shrub and the suonymus is leaning into a crepe myrtle (large shrub or small tree). So I just keep pruning!
Thank you. Sounds like you have a lot of pruning to do in your garden :) In my experience, plants just keep growing if they like the conditions, regardless of their "maximum size". And yes, the more you prune, the more they grow. I try to prune the fast growing ones towards the end of the growing season so that they stay pruned until the next spring at least. Occasionally, I also skip fertilizing for one year. As for the ladder, I can really recommend it, I would never use another ladder again for this type of garden work. Australia, very nice! My cousin lives at the Gold Coast. Good luck with all the pruning and let me know how it goes!
That was one of the best pruning videos I have seen, so well explained. I planted 20 Portuguese laurels last year. They are so beautiful but one thing I hate about them is the flowers, I prefer them just green. No flowers, no berries. When would be the best time to prune them to prevent flowers and berries? Thanks! 💕
Thank you so much, I really appreciate it. Yes, they are lovely shrubs! Try to prune them just before they flower in May or June. Depending on how much you prune away, the flower buds will be pruned away too. Hope that works for you :)
Wow it's the flowers and berries that I love the most. Super video thank you I feel confident to put some shape on a Portuguese laurel hedge I planted 2 years ago now
