Prune Boxwood Shrubs In February For Healthier Foliage That You Can Shape

While some people enjoy the wild, untamed look of shrubs and hedges, many gardeners prefer to keep them neatly trimmed. Consistent pruning is important, but if you're growing evergreen plants for foliage that you can shape, you also need to pay attention to timing. Pruning at the wrong time can leave your plants unhealthy, sparse, and difficult to restore. For healthier foliage that you can shape into formal hedges, rounded mounds, and elegant topiaries, boxwoods (Buxus spp.) are an evergreen shrub best pruned in February. 

Boxwoods are frequently grown by gardeners in Zones 5-9, but because they're easy to grow and don't require much maintenance, people sometimes assume they can be pruned anytime. However, if you want to promote the lush, dense growth that boxwoods are famous for, you need to pay attention to a pruning cycle that works for them.

Common gardening mistakes such as confusing holly and boxwoods could set your plants back. While they may share similar traits, their optimal pruning times don't line up. While many plants that should be pruned in the fall, boxwoods aren't one of them. Instead, they respond best to pruning when they are dormant, especially during late winter and early spring before they start to bud out. This makes February an ideal time to give boxwoods a hard prune, even if you've been neglecting them for years.

Boxwoods are popular evergreen shrubs that are perfect for plant sculpting, and with over 150 cultivars in the genus, there's a plant for every purpose. They come in different heights, so whether you're looking for formal rectangular hedges, low foundation plantings, or ball-shaped mounds, you can easily find a variety to fit your design. You can also choose from a wide range of colors, including cultivars with bright yellow or gold foliage, white leaves, and variegated varieties.

Although we already answered the question of whether you should prune boxwood in the fall or wait until spring, there's a little more to it. After you plant boxwoods, it can take a few years for them to get established, so give them at least one full season before you start consistent pruning. It's also important to be aware that pruning is one of two main techniques for maintaining boxwoods, with the other being shearing. Pruning is what you want to focus on in February to thin the canopy. This allows light and air to come into the center of the plant, which encourages the dense growth that makes it perfect for shaping.

Shearing, on the other hand, is done to remove the outer foliage, which is key to preventing diseases. While this can be done during the annual pruning in February, you can even wait until the buds have started to show some green. Then, a critically-timed shearing will encourage new growth to make your boxwoods even more dense.