Pruning thujas

[Scott M]

Is it possible to overprune these things? Our thujas just got out of control, I saw pictures from when we moved in to how they looked now and how bad their tops looked from heavy snows in the winters. I took the liberty of cutting them back some, the sides look a little barren. Will they come around? Honestly, if they die, I'm okay with going in a different direction, but I thought I would ask (Yes, I prune first and ask questions later ).

[Dotch]

Hard to say w/o a photo. The thujas (arborvitae) we used to have got to the point where they looked just plain silly after pruning, especially the older they got. The people who planted them hadn't allowed enough room between them or the house. The shrubs didn't fill in very well either once the pruning got severe in an attempt to keep them at a manageable size. After we decided to remodel the contractor needed them out of his way. 1 tractor, 1 log chain & 15 minutes later they all came out.

[pushbutton]

Dotch pretty much nailed this one in that they are often planted too close to the house, which is fine, but you can not then expect them to have a long while looking good/maintainable lifespan....maybe 7 to 12 years. They do grow slow and do not need a lot of pruning, and if you need/want to prune them, best to do so on the new growth. Cant remember exactly, but probably mid/late Juneish when the foliage is a lighter green, and then it is our version of just a trim. If you start cutting back beyond the green growth it might not come back, more so as the plant ages. And, yes, the log chain is often the final "prune"

[Dotch]

Yup, the mid-late June timeframe was about when I was instructed by the horticulturally talented Mrs. Cheviot to go forth and shear the new growth on them. Can't say as I really miss doing that either.