The promise of spring can make even the most casual gardener feel like an enthusiastic nature-sculptor, pruning shears in hand and visions of lush blooms dancing in their mind. But enthusiasm has a flip side, and one of the biggest gardening mistakes happens before spring ever arrives: pruning too early. It feels productive, satisfying, and even hopeful—but it can quietly set your shrubs up for disaster. We’re talking smaller blooms, frost damage, stunted growth, or even plants that don’t survive to see summer’s sunlight.
Before you start trimming and shaping, it pays to understand what your shrubs are actually doing during winter—and why they need you to wait just a little longer.
