Some plants can be cut to the ground each year, but there are others you barely touch and it's pandemonium! Find out which ones are which, as well as which plants are appropriately sheared every year. Plants discussed include lavatera, heather, lavender, rockroses, witch hazel, winter sweet, double-file viburnum, Perovskia, and Senecio greyi. Please note…

Creating and maintaining a Japanese Garden requires a high level of pruning skill and dedicated annual maintenance. This class covers the pruning of Japanese maples (upright and weeping), bamboo, cloud pruning pines, and tamamono shearing. Please note that registration for online classes will end one hour prior to class start time. Recordings of online classes…

Learn how to prune the plants that Cass Turnbull called the Puzzlers and Consequences. This class teaches how to prune Rhododendron, Hydrangea, Callicarpa (Beautyberry), Viburnum bodnantense, and Abelia. Included in this class are basic pruning techniques, common pruning mistakes and corrective pruning. Please note that registration for online classes will end one hour prior to…

This class covers pruning and management of some of our most common ornamental vines: wisteria, common varieties of clematis, Boston ivy/Virginia creeper, trumpet vine and honeysuckle. Please note that registration for online classes will end one hour prior to class start time. Recordings of online classes will be available for viewing for two weeks after…

This is one of PlantAmnesty’s most popular classes and offers an introduction to pruning and landscape renovation. You will learn how to undo overplanting errors, renovate neglected plants, clean up the landscape and determine when transplanting might be the best option. Please note that registration for online classes will end one hour prior to class…

Learn how to restore the natural shapes of trees and shrubs that have been mal-pruned. The three most common forms of mal-pruning (tree topping, over-thinning of trees and shrubs, and inappropriate shearing) will be reviewed.  Included are discussions of water-sprouts, suckers, radical renovation techniques, and crown restoration. Please note that registration for online classes will…

This class covers the three main forms of mal-pruning: tree topping, inappropriate shearing of trees and shrubs, and over thinning. We compare and contrast mal-pruning with bona fide examples of pruning art: pollarding, cloud pruning, topiary, pleaching, and coppicing. This class ends on a humorous note with photos of the Good, the Bad, and the…

Learn the basics of fruit tree pruning and why your pruning strategies might be different when you prune for production. This class will cover apple, cherry, plum and pear trees.  Dormant season is a good time to prune many of our more common fruit trees, but summer pruning may be better for some fruits and…

Learn the basics of rose care and pruning and how to approach the different types of roses, including hybrid tea, shrub, and climbing roses.  Please note that registration for classes will end one hour prior to class start time. Recordings of online classes will be available for viewing for two weeks after the class date.…

Pruning trees makes sense when you understand the science behind it. You will be introduced to the basics of tree biology and structure, tree responses to the basic types of pruning cuts, and pruning standards and best management practices. Please note that registration for online classes will end one hour prior to class start time.…

This class will show you how, what and when to apply a specific pruning system. This class will cover the natural pruning system, including structural pruning of young trees, as well as mature tree pruning techniques (crown cleaning, crown thinning, crown raising, crown reduction). More formal systems including pollarding, espalier, and pleaching are also covered.…