A good friend gave me cordless hedge clippers for Christmas. They’re wonderful—light and easy to operate. I practiced on shrubs that only needed to be topped before tackling my boxwoods.
I planted English boxwoods around the birdbath several years ago in hopes of getting a cool diamond shaped hedge. The vivid evergreen shrubs are perfect for low hedges and formal gardens, but this variety grows ever so slowly. This year finally it was time to shape them. Cutting the boxwoods back was urgent because Rusty, the stray cat, camps out under the birdbath almost every day. Hidden by the foliage and a speedy pouncer, he nabs an alarming number of birds there.
Obviously, I need a lot more practice to shape my English boxwoods. I didn’t get the diamond I hoped for--it’s more like a lopsided heart. That’s okay because boxwoods are very forgiving and respond well to pruning. They’ll grow back and I can try again later in the season. But one mission was accomplished. Rusty can’t hide under the birdbath any longer so hopefully my songbirds will be a little safer.
I think that the shape looks great - if you didn't say anything, I would have thought you planned it that way. Much better for Rusty not catching birds unawares!
Posted by: Rose | May 06, 2011 at 08:12 PM