I have several taxus shrubs & burning bushes that have become too large for the front of my house. They are not excessively big but I would like them smaller. They are about 15 years old & have had a moderate pruning at least once a year. The taxus are about 3 feet tall & the burning bushes about 4.5 feet tall.

I have seen people radically prune back taxus & they look bad for a while but recover & begin new growth several months later. What are the time of year when this should be done & what are the general rules for a more agressive pruning of taxus?

Can burning bushes be agressively pruned also? If yes, are there any special rules for pruning burning bushes?

Taxus are one of the few evergreens that will respond to severe pruning by respouting from latent buds on more mature wood. If they are overgrown to the point that they have out grown their allotted space, you really have nothing to lose but time by trying to cut it back. You can cut back the offending stems and hope that during the next growing season it sprouts new growth. If it doesn’t, you are one step closer to removal. If it does, with patience and prudent use of fertilizer, the plant will rejuvenate in time.

If the plants are not too old, they may still have latent or dormant buds along the larger stems.

To rejuvenate a neglected burning bush, cut back hard –by one third to one half. The plants should recover nicely.