How to Trim Hedges (Best Tips)

When considering maintaining your hedging, there are a variety of options available. If you decide to go the DIY route there are a few things you’ll want to pay attention to in order to ensure that your hedges look their best. We highly recommend that you hire a professional Toronto hedge trimming service to ensure your hedges keep your hedges looking their best and healthiest, this helps to boost your curb appeal also. The following are some very useful hedge trimming tips that you must pay attention to if you want to be successful.

Use The Right Hedge Trimming Tools When Trimming Hedges

When it comes to landscaping tools, there are a variety of hedge trimmers which can make your life much easier. Including power trimmer such as gas trimmers An expensive, professional hedge trimming tool will have cutting teeth on both sides of the blade, similar to a chain saw. The best way to use this type of equipment is to cut the sides of the hedge vertically. This can be done rather simply by walking forward and moving the hedge trimmer in an arc shaped path sweeping up and down. It may take a few months to get this technique down, but once you have perfected it keeping your hedges trimmed and looking great is incredibly simple.

Use The Right Hedge Trimmers & Pruning Tools

When trimming your hedges it’s very important that all of your tools are in top condition. This means ensuring your trimmers are sharp and well maintained. One easy way to tell whether or not you’re equipment is sharp or not is to simply book at the chopped branches, if the ends of the cut branches appear ragged it’s likely they your equipment needs to be sharpened.

Dull Hedge Shears Are Bad for Your Hedges

A true pro tip is to use sharp tools. Not only is dull equipment bad for your hedges it puts more wear and tear on your trimmer and can even be dangerous. If you suspect that your hedge trimmer requires maintenance be sure to contact the manufacturer for more information.

Remove Old Stems

If you happen to have a hedge that’s become overgrown and are attempting to tame its wild appearance, it is very important to trim back older stems. Using loppers to trim back these older stems is very important. Ideally, you’ll want to trim back 1/3 older stems, which will allow sunlight to penetrate deep into the hedges interior. Not only providing nourishment to the interior of the hedge but also allowing light to shimmer through creating a majestic and beautiful appearance. When dealing with stems that have a Y shaped splitting them, always be certain to cut them just above the Y split.

Remove Stems That Are Growing Out of the Hedge

Additionally, you’ll want to find long stems that may have grown right out of the hedge. These stems if left untreated will not only add to an unsightly appearance but can also become hazardous. The best way to deal with these types of stems is to chop them as close to the ground as is possible. When dealing with very thin stems hand pruners are a fantastic option.

We highly recommend that you retain the services of a professional landscaping company, we hope that the selection of hedge trimming tips will help you if you decide to DIY your hedge trimming project. For more helpful information, please see our hedge trimming frequently asked questions page.