How To Trim Overgrown Bushes and Shrubs

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Nothing makes a fine home look less appealing than overgrown, unwieldy bushes or shrubs. Since many people have never trimmed bushes before and perhaps don't want to hire it done, we have found a very good video on how to trim overgrown bushes and shrubs. In it, our instructor discusses some very good things to watch for that are not found in most of the other videos we have reviewed. Details below.

Supplies Needed

BLACK+DECKER HH2455 3.3-Amp HedgeHog Hedge Trimmer or
BLACK+DECKER LHT2220 20V Lithium Ion Hedge Trimmer
Safety glasses
Drop cloth (optional for easier pickup of trimmings)
Ladder (depending on height of shrubs, hedges or bushes

Step by Step Instructions

The first thing I liked about this video is that safety is mentioned several times. Right away the importance of safety glasses is shown. And later on our instructor discusses the dangers of being careless with a power hedge trimmer and how you could severely cut yourself. But, with care, this should not be a problem.

You will find this job is quite easy to do with a power shrub trimmer. Much easier than using non-power trimmers which require much more muscle power.

A great tip is to just remove the outer portion of your bush - perhaps no more than six inches or so. Otherwise, if you cut too deep, you will expose unsightly brown branches and maybe do damage to the bush as well.

So, your purpose is twofold - cut off the stragglers and then trim for the shape you desire. Many times you will find that you simply want to do a "rounding" shape as that is frequently the inherent shape of many bushes.

And, finally, make sure you don't run the power hedge trimmer into the ground... especially if there are rocks surrounding the bushes. This can severely damage the cutting edges of the trimmer or, in the least, make them much duller and less effective.

Trimming bushes is not a hard job. But care must be taken regarding personal safety.

Perhaps the hardest part - and the part that I like the least - is picking up all the trimmings when the shaping is done. I have on occasion even put down a drop cloth to speed up picking up the trimmings.

If you have a lot of work to do, you may find your arms can tire a bit. So, beware if this happens as this is when accidents are more likely to happen.

Well-trimmed shrubs can really make a house look much more appealing and you will find great satisfaction in a job well done.

And by using a power bush trimmer, you will find it well worth the time and effort.