Trimming a Honeysuckle.

[nes]

I'm looking for suggestions both on trimming and on shaping our honeysuckle. It was pretty neglected in the past so was wildly over-grown (ok it doesn't look that much better now either). The problem is that it is interfering with our satellite signal, so I kinda need to do it asap.



This is what I was thinking:


However, I'm very concerned that trimming that much of the honey suckle will make it look very sparse on the top.

Help!

(FYI Thats a jade tree in the pot beneath it, I wanted to leave it out of the summer and that's the best spot for just a little morning and evening sun and light watering, it's doing very well!)

[rainbowgardener]

Whatever gives you the look you want. You could cut the whole thing off at ground level and it would just come right back, so you don't have to worry about hurting the shrub. The thing to remember is that every branch you cut is going to sprout several more branches radiating out from the cut and they will grow very fast. So unless you want to be trimming the thing every few months, cut lower than you think you need to and expect it to be fuller and brushier above the cut line when it grows out.

(Understand that honeysuckle shrubs are hugely invasive pests where I live and I have devoted a ton of time and energy to getting rid of them, hence the less than respectful tone.)

[Kisal]

I certainly wouldn't prune it too drastically, unless it's Japanese honeysuckle. That's the invasive one.

I have one of the slow growing honeysuckles. It has taken 5 years to grow up a 9' trellis. It'll undoubtedly take at least a couple more years to grow across the top and meet the one on the other side.

[nes]

Thanks for the information guys!

I`m not sure what kind of honeysuckle it is, we do have allot of weeds but I think these were planted intentionally (this one is white and there is a dwarf pink one as well). I think it does grow fairly quickly though as I have seen lots of new growth already this year.

I`ll try trimming it a little lower then what I was thinking .

[applestar]

Shrubs like this usually benefit from thinning -- cutting older stems to the ground -- usually done while dormant. You might look into it and think about doing that. Timing will depend on where you live, when the shrub flowers, etc. -- probably best if you ask your local ag. extension.

[Haesuse]

totally useless for this post, but...

... god, i love honeysuckle.

[nes]

Thanks for all the helps guys and the confidence boost I tend to be an over-ambitious trimmer so it's nice to know I was doing more good then harm. My little honey-suckle got quite the haircut!



I think it's going to grow in beautifully thick and in a much better shape now. Good thing we can only see the front - the back is all stems!

H - it does smell beautiful!