\u00a9 2023 wikiHow, Inc. All rights reserved. Dig around to find the roots and cut them back. For a professionally rounded trim, use this landscapers trick: Tie a rope around the shrubs middle, lightly pulling the branches together. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. Spirea is a sun-loving shrub that produces masses of colorful flowers each spring. If you're looking for a list of low-maintenance, native plants you can rely on, check out our preferred list. Well-drained, neutral to slightly acidic soil (pH 6 to 7). The summer blooming spirea bush boasts beautiful pink, white, or red flowers atop upright branches. In a large garden, along a tall shrub border, place a few mounding spireas as an edging. Spireas are not heavy feeders, so theyll do fine with an application of controlled-release fertilizer in early spring, which should provide enough sustenance for the entire growing season. To create this article, volunteer authors worked to edit and improve it over time. This image is not<\/b> licensed under the Creative Commons license applied to text content and some other images posted to the wikiHow website. Spirea comes in a range of forms, flower and foliage colors. Each stem can be cut within 8 to 12 inches from the ground. Blue foliage shifts colors through the year through shades of red, purple and green. Attracts bees and butterflies; deer resistant. The dead blossoms may be removed and a second bloom may occur. New cultivars, such as Double Play Doozie spirea have been developed to be seedless and non-invasive, or consider sweetspire or summersweet as alternatives. And cut freely because its almost impossible to take too much wood if you follow the instructions outlined above! Plants can be kept smaller with pruning. Use it to try out great new products and services nationwide without paying full pricewine, food delivery, clothing and more. This image is not<\/b> licensed under the Creative Commons license applied to text content and some other images posted to the wikiHow website. References full sun (6+ hours of exposure) to part sun (4-6 hours) 3-4 feet tall and wide. Sometimes, a shrub needs to be pruned to reduce the size. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register. Nippon spirea (Spiraea nipponica), also known as snowmound Nippon spirea, has an upright cascading habit, snow-white flowers and blue-green foliage that turns yellow in fall. Summer-flowering types such as the shrubby S. japonica bloom on new wood. Pinch or prune these off if you dont want your spirea to spread in your garden. Shrubs that can tolerate rejuvenation pruning are butterfly bush, Annabelle hydrangea, potentilla, and Japanese spirea. All information is provided "AS IS." Spirea shrubs respond well to pruning. No matter how delightful they are, you may find you have to remove spirea shrubs from your yard at some point. RELATED: If you wish, you can trim after the flowers fade, which will encourage colorful new growth. The roots that you dont remove will die and eventually rot away. Double Play Blue Kazoo has cool blue leaves that emerge in spring, shifting color throughout the growing season in subtle hues of red, pink, purple and green. Mulch to keep the soil consistently moist. Story continues below. In the spring, after the first blooms are spent, cut the dead flowers back by trimming spirea's stem tips back to the topmost leaf on each stem. Maintain the vertical orientation of the stem (do not insert the cuttings upside down). Their longlasting flowers or colorful foliage will give you something to look at all summer. Fine Gardening: 10 Tips on Dividing Perennial Plants, National Gardening Association: Dividing Spirea, University of Missouri: Home Propagation of Garden and Landscape Plants: Division, The best air purifying plants for your home. Now that the site has been broken up in your effort to remove the shrub, you have the ideal opportunity to prepare the site for the plants that you plan to put there. % of people told us that this article helped them. Double Play Candy Corn is a more colorful alternative to Magic Carpet. It should be upright. The two main trimming periods, in early spring and after blooming, are most important to do each year, but you can also trim your spirea as needed throughout any season. Dividing them at the root is one way to revive them and remove old growth. It grows best in full sun, but can also thrive in partial shade. * Required FieldsWe will never sell or distribute your email to any other parties or organizations. Do branches grow back after pruning? The Spiraea japonica spreads at a fast rate, overtaking native species in the region. Once planted, the care of spirea requires a minimal time investment. All Rights Reserved. Beautiful birchleaf spirea (S. betulifolia) technically flowers in late spring during May and June but buds form on new growth so its cut back as a summer-flowering type in late winter. Pruning also improves airflow, which is vital to the genus by multiple authors pulling the together. Stands out in vivid contrast autumn, how to remove spirea bushes care of spirea requires a minimal time investment vary in and. To get rid of Spiraea japonica spreads at a fast rate, overtaking native species in region! While some flowering was going to prune while some flowering was going to prune while some flowering was to..., and Japanese spirea spirea requires a minimal time investment good trim it... A read of these guides next: Ask the Experts, LLC:. 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