Bay Tree trimming - how to finish the job properly!

Ah, everyone loves a Bay tree, don't they?

Especially if it's neatly trimmed.

What could be nicer than this - left - a sturdy standard Bay in a herb garden.

Perfect! 

"Standard", in case you don't already know, in this context, means "carefully nurtured to create a single central stem with a tuft of foliage on top" as opposed to a wild shaggy bush, taking over the entire bed, which is what Bay does, if left to its own devices.

Here's another one, in one of "my" gardens - right - after it's had the first stage of its regular pruning.

The owner doesn't want it clipped too formally: it's not meant to be a showpiece in the way that the one above is, they just want it to be kept under control, away from the hedge behind it, not too big, and not overshadowing the rest of the bed.

So I go in once or twice a year, and trim off about a yard in all directions, to get it back to a round shape, not too formal, but tidy.

I don't do this with shears, I do it with secateurs, one branch at a time, because Bay - like Laurel - has very big leaves, and if you run the shears over it, you end up with a super-neat shape on that first day, but all the cut ends of the leaves go brown, so in a week or so, it looks a right mess.

You might be thinking that shears would be quicker, but actually you're wrong: if you clip, then you have to spend a long time picking up all the bits underneath. But if you use secateurs, you can take hold of each branch as you cut it, and toss it straight in the wheelbarrow: also, cutting individual branches means that you are dealing with "big" bits, which are easy to get hold of - as opposed to clipping with shears, which produces a mass of small bits, which take more effort to collect up at the end.

Having said all that, I will repeat that I never clip large-leaved plants: so my choice of tool is far more to do with horticultural necessity, than cleaning-up-convenience! (I don't want you to get the idea that I'm lazy - I always strive to find the quickest, most efficient ways to do things, but that's not because I am lazy!)

One of Trainees would do a job like this, and would then walk away and leave it, thinking that the job was done: it took me several weeks to train them to finish the job off, by going in on hands and knees to remove the lower sprouts and suckers from the base, which really is part of the job. If you don't clean off all that lower growth, you will quickly lose the "standard" shape.

This particular Bay is multi-stemmed, but the principle is the same: you remove lower sprouts, and any shoots which are springing up from ground level.

And because I like to do a job "properly", I will also clear up all the dead leaves from the nearby Holly, despite the risk to life and limb - well, hands, anyway - from the prickly leaves, eh Nicky? (*grins at fellow gardener who also gets stabbed to death by Holly leaves*)

There we go - left.

Now we have done the job properly: the upper part is shapely and tidy, without being too formal: the multiple stems are clean and clear: and all the nasty dead debris and clutter from below it has been removed.

Having removed the lower sprouts, I've also tidied up the lower edge of the foliage, once I could see it clearly: again, not a topiary clip, not super-neat, just enough to make a nice even shape.

If you can't see the difference, go back and look at the picture above. And if you still can't see the difference, then I don't want you as a Trainee! *laughs*

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