pruning trees & shrubs

I live in central scotland and have a lovely cherry tree in my front garden which has become a bit top heavy with lots of wispy brittle branches plus one or two larger ones which need cut back and thinned out.   Could I do it now or wait until after flowering?   My thinking is that I can see the structure easier at present while there are no leaves on the tree.

Secondly, I have a pieris in a small pot on my patio which has been there for a number of years and is very healthy.   However, a wayward branch is making the plant lop sided and I would like to cut it out.   Can I do it now or as with the cherry tree, wait until after the spring?

Hi tarttartan, definitely don't prune your cherry tree now. This job needs to be done in summer, to prevent the fungal disease silver leaf. You could tie ribbons around the branches you want to cut now, so you know what you're cutting in summer.. but otherwise, leave well alone.

Regarding your pieris, I would also wait a while. In winter, there's the potential for pruned plants to get die-back, so you'd have to prune all of this out anyway at a later date. Wait until temperatures increase and prune your pieris in spring, instead.

Hope this helps

Kate

gardenersworld.com team

Thats useful advice - particularly for the cherry tree - its getting old and creaky like me, but still looks magnificent [unlike me unfortunately!]

I'm sure you still look very handsome tarttatan!