Gardening expert Monty Don says the first fortnight of March is the best time to prune a number of plants for an abundance of flowers later on
Angela Patrone Senior Lifestyle Reporter and Ellen Jenne Senior U35 Spare Time Writer
07:56, 04 Mar 2026
Gardening expert Monty Don says the first fortnight of March is the best time to prune a number of plants for an abundance of flowers later on(Image: Anna Cinaroglu via Getty Images)
Pruning is a vital gardening task for controlling growth, shaping plants, encouraging flowering or fruiting stems for the upcoming season, and, most importantly, removing dead, damaged or diseased parts of plants. According to gardening expert Monty Don, effective pruning must be undertaken at the right time, which varies depending on the plant type, and should follow “one rule”.
Monty provided advice on when and how to prune plants this month in his March gardening tasks blog post. He suggested using exceptionally sharp and clean secateurs, also known as shears.
The most commonly employed tool for this purpose is bypass secateurs, which are essentially scissors with one thin and one thicker cutting blade. They cause minimal damage to the stem, making them ideal for trimming living plants and lighter tasks such as cutting flowers.
The most frequently used tool for pruning is bypass secateurs(Image: Getty)
Gardeners might also utilise kitchen scissors for plants with soft stems, but they must be properly cleaned to avoid introducing infection, which could kill the plant.
Monty said that the first two weeks of March is the “best time to prune any shrubs and climbers” that will flower on new growth, particularly late-flowering clematis, roses and buddleia, reports the Express.
The horticultural authority noted that he prefers to do this when he “starts to see new shoots appearing”.
Gardeners are advised to “resist the temptation to do so” if February is mild, as a late frost could damage any emerging growth. Shrubs such as cornus, willow and sambucus can be drastically pruned to stimulate new growth, which will “glow with extra bright colour next winter”.
As previously mentioned, Monty insists there’s “only one rule to follow” when pruning, and that’s to “always cut back to something”, whether it’s a side shoot or leaf bud.
Beyond this, the 70-year-old encourages gardeners not to fret over outward-facing buds or other specific details.
Monty explained that the objective of pruning, in line with his rule, is to “encourage vigorous new growth that will, in turn, produce lots of flowers”.
For climbing varieties like the Viticella group of clematis, pruning aims to prevent flowers from continually growing higher up the plant, leaving the lower section bare.
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