Last updated on January 26th, 2022
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Rosemary Pruning
Rosemary is an evergreen shrub (herb) that is often used in cooking recipes. It is often mistaken for Lavender as it looks very similar to the untrained eye. Unlike Lavender, it is not essential to prune Rosemary but it does benefit from yearly pruning to keep it looking healthy and to stop it from getting overgrown.
They can reach heights of 5ft (150cm) if left unpruned they can quickly outgrow their desired area and become very woody. They are often planted as formal or informal hedges but do grow well in pots as well as a border shrub against walls and fences. They are also now commonly grown as a topiary plant because of their evergreen characteristics. There are many varieties, from dwarf bushy ones to trailing spreading varieties that are ideal for trailing over pots.
When should you prune Rosemary?
If you have a rosemary hedge, single plants in pots or bushes planted in the ground they are all best pruned in the same way, every year.
Rosemary is best pruned with secateurs after it has finished flowering and this is usually in spring/summer.
How to prune Rosemary
Simply cutting around 2-3 inches of green growth away will keep the plants looking compact and healthy. They will then have time to grow new soft fresh growth that will have time to mature before winter when the first frost can damage younger growth. Pruning too late will risk the new growth being damaged by the frost. Although it usually does not kill plants it can make them look unsightly.
Did you know Rosemary is generally disease and pest free?
Hard pruning
Sometimes you may have a plant that has become overgrown and too big or is starting to look leggy and woody. Ideally, you want to avoid this happening in the first place by pruning yearly as described above. Should you need to prune it back hard, they do usually respond well and will come back looking better than ever.
Preferably, you want to do hard pruning in intervals to reduce the amount of shock to the plant. In spring when the frost has finished (usually May) cut back the whole plant by around one third. Once this is done leave the plant to grow again.
Once there is substantial new growth, prune again by another third, this is usually around August. This second prune will give the plant time to recover before winter.
If you need to cut back harder because pruning back by one third is simply not enough then pruning back by 50% is usually okay. Pruning back any harder will be risky and could kill the plant, however, lots of gardeners have done this successfully.
Growing Rosemary
Rosemary is very easy to grow and thrives in poor soils. Once fully established they are also drought resistant. They prefer moist but well-drained soils in a full sun location. They grow happily in exposed or sheltered locations and are well suited for coastal gardens, wall borders as well as cottage and rock gardens.
Propagating Rosemary
Rosemary is best propagated by taking a semi-hardwood cutting in the summer from the current season’s growth. The cuttings are easy to take and should be ready to pot on in autumn.
