I will admit that talking about pruning in a newsletter is a bit like trying to teach skiing on the radio. But at the nursery, I've noticed that if I mention pruning, people get twitchy. And nothing must make a plant more nervous than twitchy people with sharp tools in their hands. So I think it's a good idea to -- dare I say it? -- take a stab at the subject.

The first area that makes people apprehensive: When to prune. In general, you want to prune summer-blooming shrubs in the early spring. There are some notable exceptions, but most shrubs that flower in the summer do so on new growth. And pruning in the early spring will encourage the plant to make new growth. If your shrubs flower early in the season, trim them just after they bloom. These shrubs form their buds in the summer. If you prune them any time except right after they bloom, you'll cut off next year's flowers.

When you're pruning evergreens, you can remember the old adage: Prune when your tools are sharp. Which is another way of saying, whenever you get around to it. But remember this: Pruning always stimulates growth. Think about it. The leaves feed the plant, right? So when you cut them off, the plant will respond by growing more, as quickly as possible.

Ideally, pruning should always be done to improve appearance, not control size. If the plant is going to respond by replacing the foliage you've just cut off, it's obvious that trying to prevent a plant from growing is a futile effort. So time your trimming according to the type of shrubs you have, and think about your pruning as being more like housekeeping and less like major surgery.