Formal hedges need special techniques to keep them in shape

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by Beth Botts - Jun. 7, 2006 12:00 AM
Chicago Tribune

Sometimes a shrub needs a sharp edge.

Horticulturists agree that for most shrubs, selective pruning that retains their natural form is healthier, more attractive and much easier on the gardener than shearing them into sharp, severe shapes.

But sometimes, in some situations, shearing - clipping all the branches in a shrub to create an even surface - works. In Chicago's Grant Park, for example, where Bruno Maciuszek, 80, has been pruning the formal hedges in the European-style gardens around Buckingham Fountain since 1959. He's the Chicago Park District's senior shrub man, and he figures he's got around 20,000 plants on his beat.

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