When should I prune?

We’re at the time of year where everyone’s yard is looking pretty barren.

Here in Mandeville, LA we’ve been bouncing between warm and humid and ice friggin cold.

We had around 6” of snow a few weeks ago and a hard freeze to follow that up.

For many plant varieties, now is the perfect time to prune. Deciduous trees can be shaped up to maintain a nice uniform look.

Most varieties of ornamental grasses need to be cut back to 4" - 6” from the ground. With the exception of Muhly grass. Muhly grass should be cut 6”- 8” from the ground depending on the size of the plant.

Most folks (including myself) are REALLY tempted to cut back the dead vegatation on the herbaceous plants. Stuff like philodendrons, birds of paradise, colocasia, alocasia, etc…. DON’T do it! Just wait until April or so when we’re clear of anymore freezes.

For Azaleas, they’ll bloom here pretty soon.. Cut them immediately after they drop the flowers.

For Camelias, it may already be too late to prune. Depending on the variety, they may have already set their buds. If that’s the case, wait until next years blooms fall and prune immediately after.