Pruning things

[lemisscared]

can anyone give me some advice? i planted some shrubs last year and they did well so would like to keep them going.

i have:
a climbing rose
a couple of clematis
a buddlea

the clematis say to prune back to 12" in the first year seems harsh.

the buddlea (which i love . it grew huge really quickly. is variegated with bright magenta blooms) says prune hard in spring. im scared!!!

hopeful bump

Hi -

The different varieties of all of those may need pruning in different ways, and at different times.

Buddleia - is the easiest, as it is so tough, you can cut almost down to ground level and it will bounce back!

www.gardenseeker.com/pruning/pruning_buddleja_buddleia.htm

Clematis:

www.britishclematis.org.uk/pruning.htm

Roses:

www.finegardening.com/pruning-climbing-roses

www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=189

Check out the dedicated plant sites for yourself as well.

Thanks for the links - it was useful to have it explained why they need pruning, it seems counter intuitive to cut the budleja back because it seems to be thriving but i will. The same with the clematis but they have died back - i couldn't work out which ones i have so i'll have a look as it matters when you do it. Im just happy because the daffodils i planted have come up

We prune newly planted plants to establish root growth, as it takes alot of energy to maintain the top growth when it needs to put it's energy below ground. Once the roots are established the top growth will rocket away.

Thanks delicious, that makes me feel better about hacking away. Will leave til the end of feb though