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. This will again cause sideshoots to grow and the plants can be given a final shaping and tidy up if necessary in early autumn. Box topiary, secateurs, sheep-hand shears, large scissors or garden shearsMay - August 20 minutes for each plantUse secateurs scissors

Refers to leaves that are three times as long as they are wide, with roughly parallel sides.

to cut and bend, so a whole clutch of cone hanging baskets can be made in under an hour.1 50cm x 100cm aluminium sheet per cone1.5m of thin galvanised wireFelt pen and stringMetal cutters and a small bradawl50cm x 100cm piece of bubble wrapIvy and ferns

hedge thoroughly before trimming it to ensure there are no birds nesting within. It is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while it is in use or being built.Conifer hedgeElectric or petrol

strong new shoots from the base. You may need to use long-handled loppers for more leverage if the wood is thick and tough.To rejuvenate old shrubs or coppice shrubs that are grown for the colour of their stems, hard prune all the stems down to 10cm - 15

Pruning roses keeps them in shape and encourages more flower growth and healthier plants. Cut weak shoots right back to promote stronger growth from the base.Rose bushSecateursautumn or spring20 minutesRemove dead shoots and the tips of stems

to your garden.

in shape and involves pruning the soft, current season's growth before it has chance to become woody.Secateurslate-June - mid-August 50 minutes for medium-sized tree Cut back the leading shoots of each branch by half their length to encourage the production

Plum trees can be prone to silver leaf disease if pruned in winter, so cut them back in summer to encourage the development of bushy growth, which stops them becoming too large and unmanageable. Plum treeSecateurs June - July 20 minutesUse secateurs

in late-June or early July.Wisteria plantSecateurs String for tying-in if necessaryLadder if necessarymid-October - mid-March1 hourUse secateurs to cut back current season's growth back to two or three buds from the base. Cut just above the chosen bud