Free tool · no sign-up Timings from the RHS and the Woodland Trust · 35 trees and hedges
Tree & hedge care calendar.
Pick a tree or hedge below and see its year: when to prune, when to leave it, and when you can safely cut a hedge.
East Sussex timings. A mild coastal year can run a week or two ahead.
Tick what you've got. See what to do.
Choose the trees and hedges in your garden and we'll show what's good to do this month, what to hold off on, and what you can do any time of year.
A few things worth knowing
- Deadwooding and making a tree safe can be done any time of year. We just check for nesting birds between March and August before we start.
- Hedges and the law. It's an offence to disturb nesting birds, so we don't cut hedges in the nesting season (March to August). The calendar marks it in red.
- Plums, cherries and the rest of the Prunus family are pruned in summer, never winter. Winter cuts invite silver leaf disease.
- Acers, birch and magnolia bleed sap if you cut them in late winter or spring. Time it right and they're fine.
- Not sure what you've got, or it's a big job up a ladder? Send us the details and we'll take a look.
Pruning and hedge-timing questions
When should I prune apple and pear trees?
In winter, while the tree is dormant, roughly December to February. That's when you can see the framework clearly and the tree isn't pushing sap. Trained forms like espaliers and cordons also get a light tidy-up in summer, but the main pruning on a free-standing apple or pear is a winter job.
When should I prune plums, cherries and other stone fruit?
In summer, not winter, roughly June to August. Plums, cherries and the rest of the Prunus family are prone to silver leaf disease and bacterial canker, and cutting them in the damp winter months is how the spores get in. Pruning in the growing season lets the wounds seal fast. This is the opposite rule to apples and pears.
When can I legally cut a hedge?
Outside the bird-nesting season, which runs roughly March to August. It is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to damage or destroy an active nest, so the safe window for cutting most garden and field hedges is about September to late February. Always check the hedge for active nests before you start, whatever the date.
When should I prune an acer (Japanese maple) without it bleeding?
In early winter, when the tree is fully dormant, roughly November to January. Acers bleed sap heavily if you cut them in late winter or spring, which weakens the tree, so we keep well clear of February to May. Most acers need very little pruning anyway.
When do fruit trees blossom?
Apple and pear blossom comes through around April to May, followed by the fruit in September to October. The interactive calendar above shows the blossom, fruit and pruning windows together for each tree, so you can see how they line up across the year.
Want it done properly?
If a tree or hedge is too big, too high, or you're just not sure, we'll come and have a look. Free site visit, written quote, no hard sell.